The Long Summer
by code name baron
Summary: Kim got the Otai offer. It is a good opportunity. The best. Kim has to decide before the summer is over. She doesn't know what Jack's letter said almost a year and a half ago, but she knew what hers did. Not much has changed since then for her... but what about Jack? - Summer before the senior year. Kick hasn't happened yet.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Ahhh, the new story. Let me know what you thinks. It is a slight AU starting with the summer before the senior year. As I said in the summary, Kick hasn't happened yet.

* * *

The dojo is decorated with balloons and streamers, though some of balloons are deflated and most of the streamers came down. Inside it is still full of people and party is going strong. Wasabi gang and associates are celebrating the end of the junior year and Kim's awesome (Jack promises that he is happy for his friend) offer from Otai. Jerry is in charge of music and is happy to DJ, dancing along the music and showcasing his moves.

Jack's on his way back from the bathroom, absently scrolling through e-mails on his phone, when he glances up for a minute and spots Kim sitting on the bench outside.

The rest of the group is still in the room, sipping from plastic cups (they may or may not have spiked the punch a little), laughing over cake, and dancing to the music, so he hesitates for a minute. Her body language doesn't suggest any turmoil or crisis, but the fact that she's sitting out there alone in her little sleeveless dress doesn't exactly seem like one of Kim's usually 'popular girl' behavior. Still, Jack hesitates.

The air between them may be still at the moment, but he knows full well that it certainly isn't clear – he's just not sure that this is the right time to open that can of worms. They have been teetering on the edge of something for so long, he sometimes takes it as the normal state of being. He wishes they could just jump into things, or at least kiss, to resolve some of the tension, but then he remembers: she might be going away to Otai, and he promised Rudy not to start anything with her. In fact, all of them - Jerry, Eddy, Milton - promised Rudy not to start anything with Kim. It seemed silly to be beholden to that now, but Jack also suspects that he is doing it for himself as well: getting the taste of Kim as girlfriend and then letting her go might actually break his heart. God, having feelings is exhausting... So he stands there, torn as to where to go next...

But then she tilts her head just a bit, so he can see her profile in the dusky light, the determined, little lift of her chin, and he's headed toward her just like that.

He refuses to analyze the why of it.

"What are you doing out here all by yourself?" he says as the door shuts behind him.

She nearly jumps at the sound of his voice, and her eyes are wide when she looks up at him, so she seems genuinely startled that he's come out after her.

"Just getting a little air," she says breezily. "And the sky is so clear! Look at all those stars."

He glances upward, where the sky is so full of pinprick stars that it looks like a bottle of her glitter paint has exploded above them. She leans back against the bench, stretching out with one leg crossed over the other, almost like she's at the beach catching rays instead of sitting on dirty bench in a mall courtyard. One of her little black heels with the bow in the front dangles from her toes and he watches it swing back and forth for a second, mesmerized. It isn't until he's sitting down beside her that he spots the plastic cup at her side, and when she follows his gaze, she offers her cup to him.

She grins, though, in a sly, secret way that reminds him once again just how sexy she is. He really doesn't have much hope for the collective intelligence of Seaford High's student body, not if the straight male population is any indication - because somewhere, there has to be a halfway decent, semi good-looking guy, who sees how beautiful and passionate she is and could catch her eye, take her on dates, bring her home to meet his mother. Why hasn't some lucky bastard snatched her up yet? Oh right, Kim had high standards and three over-protective friends. Jack isn't ashamed to admit that he had scared some of them off.

She sighs, and turns to watch him take a sip, her chin resting on her forearm. Her smile isn't so much mischievous as it is soft and calm, but he still has to look away, staring at the pavement in front of him instead.

He's not in love with her!

And the only excuse for looking at this pretty, tiny girl and thinking that he really wants to take gamble and just kiss her already, is that he's in love with her.

Of course, he loves her. Like he loves Jerry, Milton, and even Rudy. In a completely safe, completely platonic, brotherly way that isn't the least bit creepy. He would do things for her that he'd never dream of doing for another girl, but that's because she is a friend and needs someone to look out for her.

And yeah, sure, he's also ridiculously attracted to her. He's jerked off to fantasies of her enough times to feel just a little bit guilty about it, and he could sketch every curve of her hot, little body, from her soft cheek to her perfect breasts to her tiny waist and firm ass, from memory alone. If her necklines get any lower, he's decided that he's just going to set up camp in her cleavage and never leave.

But the love and the lust don't have anything to do with each other. They're two very separate feelings that he can compartmentalize to keep everything clean.

Sometimes, though, when she looks at him in just the right way, he feels blown apart inside, like there's barely anything holding him together, and for a moment, it seems like being in love with her is the only reasonable explanation.

"You're quiet," she says, nudging his thigh with her hand.

He shrugs and takes another sip of punch.

"I'm a little tired. Must be all the excitement."

"Tired?" she repeats, with a skeptical, amused little smile. "Not thinking, maybe?"

For a minute, he wonders if she's somehow read his mind, followed his dirty train of thought. It's nothing that would totally shock her, he thinks, but it's enough to make everything between them more complicated.

"Because I've been thinking," she declares. "I was just thinking about how we've only known each other for three years. Just three years."

"So?" he says with a smirk. "Isn't that like an entire quarter of our life?"

"On one hand, it seems like so much longer than that," she continues. "And on the other, it feels like we just met yesterday. Like there's still so much…"

She trails off, her voice fading into a sigh, and there's something almost bemused about her expression.

"That's some heavy duty thinking," he says after a moment. "Getting a little air, my ass."

She laughs and bites at her lip, like she's been caught doing something naughty.

"Well, this is the kind of occasion that calls for introspection and reflection, right? I mean, that's what Milton would say."

"He'd also say that museum trips are better than a party, so I'm not sure we should totally trust his judgment."

She tilts her head like she's trying to get a better look at him, and her serious, steady gaze makes him feel like he's being studied - until she gifts him with a smart, little grin that would take a lesser man out at the knees. Like an old pro, Jack's choosing to ignore it – that's the safest option.

"I guess not. I just feel like that by now I would have had my first love experience. Though my expertise in this area is admittedly limited."

He snorts.

"Please... You make nerds faint, date jocks, and on one occasion a prince was asking you to be his princess in the cheesiest way possible." He gestures at her with the plastic cup. "I think you have plenty of romantic expertise." If Jack sounds a little bitter and cross, he chooses to ignore it as well. He has no rights to be jealous.

She lowers her head, blushing slightly, but he can tell she's secretly pleased at the notion that she can inspire some sort of feverish devotion. He offers her the cup again, though it is nearly empty now. Her fingers brush his on the exchange, and her skin feels as cool and smooth as silk. He watches as she tips the cup back and drains the rest of it in one long sip. When she leans in then to huddle against him for support, her lips are wet and he can smell the sharp, sweet scent of the orange juice on her breath. He hunches over just a bit, moving even closer, and feels himself gliding down on that slippery slope into something dark and dangerous.

Subject change, he thinks. Something light and frothy to pull him back from the edge.

"You know I hadn't had my first love experience either. But, with my luck, if someone did declare their undying love for me tonight, it would be the Lindsay."

He exaggerates a grimace, and Kim giggles, vibrating against his side in a seriously distracting way.

"You can't really blame her, though, can you? You are irresistible."

He bobs his head in agreement.

"I'm glad people are finally starting to acknowledge that."

She taps a finger on his knee, and he looks down at the gray fabric of his pants, which seems to make her skin look even paler.

"Can I tell you a secret?" she whispers, sounding a little flirty and a little earnest. He wonders exactly how much she's had to drink. "You're my favorite. But don't tell Jerry and Milton. It might break their hearts."

He smiles because really, there's no way he can make himself feel bad about that.

"Your secret's safe with me," he whispers conspiratorially. "As long as you don't tell anyone that you can bend me to your will just by fluttering your eyes. I've got a reputation to protect."

She huffs out a little laugh and loops her arm through his. He can feel her breast against his elbow, but he tries his best to ignore it.

"This isn't the last time I'll see you, right?" she says. "You're not going to disappear on me for the whole summer?"

"Come on. You can't get rid of me that easy."

He wraps his hand around her wrist, her pulse twanging against his thumb. She nods absently, but he doesn't think that she's really convinced. He wonders if she can honestly imagine that kind of future, one where they are no longer friends.

"Kim," he says, almost embarrassed at how tender his voice sounds. "I mean it. We are in this together. Wasabi!"

She looks up at him with her unbelievably wide eyes all bright and wet, and nods again, more firm and serious this time.

"When I came here," she whispers. "I never, ever thought I'd be friends with someone like you."

He doesn't know exactly what she means – what it is that she thinks he's like – but he knows that her telling him is important.

"Me either. You are …"

He trails off because, honestly, he doesn't know how to capture her in a single, stupid sentence. He's a guy who is better with his actions than words any day of the week, but even if tries, there's something about her that he can't quite wrap his head around. Kim seems to understand what that means, and she smiles at him in a misty, yearning sort of way. He feels her warm breath on his cheek, which prompts him to pull her in for a twisted, awkward half-hug that leaves her small knees crushed between his. She shivers in his arms, but when she starts to pull away, he cups her cheek before she can get too far from him.

They seem to make the decision in the same moment, so they lean in and almost meet in the middle...

"Hey, guys! Come on, you gotta see this! Rudy and Phil are going at it boy band style!" Jerry shouts at them and Kim and Jack spring back from each other - the moment ruined. Kim gets up and sprints to the dojo, leaving Jack with hammering heart and sweat trickling down his temple.


	2. Chapter 2

The day after the party Kim is studiously avoiding any thoughts of Jack and their almost kiss in the courtyard. Because it was almost a kiss... Like that time with the Karate Games... Only this time it was not ostensibly about the characters they were playing. This was them: Kim and Jack. About to kiss... and being interrupted by their friend... God, does the universe really hate the idea of her and Jack together? They have been on the threshold of kissing and maybe a relationship in the past year enough times that Kim is actually exhausted from the constant yo-yo of the whole thing.

For a while Kim thought she knew her role in this _thing_ with Jack: she was the best friend and an occasional sidekick. In the beginning Jack used to tease her about her 'crush' (all in his head, Kim swears). He also slipped sometimes and implied that he crushed on her too. But soon they fell into a comfortable friendship routine so Kim did not see the love interest here. There were other girls in Jack's life for that. Jack is indisputably the leader of their gang and could be relied upon to make the right choice and lead others to adventures. She was/is a trusty friend who has the hero's back. Of course, there are Milton and Jerry, but when it comes down to an actual fight, Kim is only second to Jack.

Sometimes she felt vindicated by this; she's a black belt cheerleader, who has always balanced girly clothes and make-up with a determination not to be taken any less seriously at her work just because she is a girl. Other times she resented the fact that Jack Brewer, charming popular boy with plenty of dates under his belt, just didn't see her as a date option. So she dated herself.

She was OK with that for the most part. The occasional night-time fantasy - have you seen what he looks like? - doesn't count. It's just the normal everyday reaction to being alongside a chiseled hottie.

But ever since the movie, their chemistry changed. It is uneven and sometimes goes flat (like when they argued and its absence is overwhelming) and sometimes flares hot (like when the prince was into Kim and Jack's jealousy was naked for all to see), but it is there - constant and electric and Kim curses her hormones and apparently incurable crush (still, she swears, only imaginary). And yesterday's almost kiss is the latest example of their push and pull dance.

She has to wonder about the strength of their feelings if they never crossed the threshold. A year of yearning, and glances, and near misses, and she still has nothing to show for it. And now she has to decide whether to go to Otai or not. And no, stuff with Jack, is not a deciding factor, thank you very much. She is not some self-absorbed vampire lover, who would put her life on hold for a guy. Besides, stuff with Jack is not defined, or concrete, or even certain. They are 17, almost 18, for chrissake. Not Romeo and Juliette (Kim is very good at arguing with herself over Jack, almost as good as lying to herself about him and her feelings).

She would admit though that very much wanted stuff with Jack to be a factor. In the dark, when she was almost asleep, her mind would obsessively replay all the interactions with Jack and all their near misses, and she would imagine scenarios where there was no interruptions and they crossed the threshold and fell over the edge...

Riiight... Kim is not thinking about this again... No...

She gets down to the kitchen for breakfast feeling like she has not slept at all. Her parents sit at the island having a normal conversation about summer plans. Kim is not sure, but she thinks they just fought. And she is probably the reason for the fight. Her mom would cry at the mere mention of Kim going to Japan for a year. It is amazing how quickly her mom's language changes from Kimberly Beulah (scolding her headstrong teenager) into Baby and Sunshine (at the thought of Kim gone). Her dad was more subdued in his reactions and, perhaps thinking she is almost an adult and needs to be treated as such, would discuss pros and cons of Otai schooling. Her mom does not like it one bit, so they fight.

"Hello, sunshine," her mom says. See, Kim is right, they just discussed her offer from Otai.

"Hi, mom, dad," she mumbles and starts on her breakfast. All her favorites. Mom is on the roll.

"Sweetheart, your mom and I were thinking that it would be great for you to spend time with family this summer. You know, in case..." her dad starts and Kim is looking at him wide-eyed.

"You mean go to Tennessee? For the summer?" Kim is actually horrified. She planned to have this summer to figure out once and for all where she and Jack stand.

"No, no, no," her dad adds quickly and then looks chagrined at her mom's glare. "Well, maybe you should visit Nana and your cousins in Tennessee. But I was thinking more like spending time with us. I am going on an extended business trip along the West Coast. The Board wants me to visit the branches for review/alignment of all divisions. It is a necessary trip and I have been putting it off because... Well, I don't want to bore you with details, but we can visit my side of the family while we are at it. What do you say?"

Kim's dad is a pretty high up executive in one of the larger companies in the country. Kim would not be able to tell you exactly what he did, but he was busy a lot and travelled often. That he would go on a trip like that made sense. That he wanted her to come made less sense.

"Wouldn't you be busy a lot and I would just be bored sitting in a hotel by myself?" Kim asks carefully. She does not want to go, not unless she already had her heart-to-heart with Jack.

"You wouldn't be. We have family along the coast and they would be happy to keep you company. And in the cities that we don't have family, you can explore them by yourself. If you go to Otai, you'd be living by yourself. You should try it a little this summer, see if you like it."

Her mom is nodding along and Kim has a suspicion that her parents hope she would abandon the Otai idea after being by herself. So, they have united in this against her. The trip with dad is happening whether she likes it or not.

Kim guesses she has to put off the conversation with Jack yet again. Well, its not like she made a conscious decision to confront him, but she still has to see him again before the end of the summer and she hopes that they can resolve this _thing_ between them.

But before they do, she has to go on this trip with dad... Awesome..

Kim nods her head and then gets up from the island. "I am going to the mall. Maybe hang out with Grace afterwards."

"Sure thing, baby. You don't leave until the day after tomorrow. Plenty of time to pack."

* * *

Jack knows that he's hit rock bottom when he starts to look at his phone, a once trusted ally, like it's somehow betrayed him.

It's been almost 12 hours (he is not counting, he is just good at telling time) since he and Kim had almost kissed (in his dreams afterwards, they didn't stop and ended up defiling the backseat of his car in the hottest and dirtiest of ways) and they still haven't spoken a single word to one another. He knows that he should call her, text her, email her, *something* her, but he keeps hoping that she'll do the dirty work for him. And every minute that passes without his phone ringing or chirping with an incoming message drives him a little closer to the edge.

Of course, he still doesn't know what to say to her either.

He could start and acknowledge the _thing_ between them (and isn't he pathetic that he can't even name it). He probably needs to explain that they should not start anything since she is going to Otai (she should go, even if he is ready to throw up at the thought of her being away). Or because they are good friends and why spoil the good thing? Or that he is just very horny and she is very sexy and it is not a good foundation for any kind of relationship (he lies, to himself in the first place, because this _thing_ is so much more than just lust). Really, though, all he wants to do is be at that bench again and kiss her like he's wanted to for a long-long time.

None of those options seem like exactly the right answer, and it's all starting to make the space behind his eyes ache just a bit.

He's starting to wonder if he should just man up and call her – or clear his head with yet another grueling work out - when, just like that, his luck seems to change and his phone beeps with an incoming message.

He grabs for it with embarrassing desperation, nearly knocking it off the table. It might only be a text from Jerry – but it tells him to call back immediately.

He does. And is promptly floored by the news. Kim is leaving the day after tomorrow. Not to Otai, thank God. But away nonetheless. He dad is taking her with him on some stupid family business trip (what? what?) under some notion of father-daughter bonding before Japan (fine, so it does make a little sense, but Jack still does not like it).

Jerry makes sympathetic noises and really, how is it that Jerry - Jerry - knows to tell him this? OK, Jack knows that everyone pretty much assumes that he and Kim have a _thing._ His friends are awkwardly gentle with him and avoid mentioning Japan and Otai in his presence. Which is infuriating and welcome at the same time. Jerry tells him that he learned the news from Grace, who heard it from Kim directly.

So, maybe that's why she hasn't called herself? Does she know what to say to him? Because he does not. He only knows that he does not want to miss a single day with her before she goes away on this incredible (really, he actively hates Otai academy at this point) opportunity.

No matter... Whether he is ready or not, he has to man up and talk to her.

So he puts on his favorite purple shirt (really, its her favorite and he is not above subtle manipulation), gets out of his house and drives to her place for what will either be a nightmare of an evening with tearful 'nothing is going to happen between us' or an absolute fantasy of a make-out in her bed when he gets the chance to show Kim that he knows a thing or two about kissing girls.

Somehow, Jack does not see any other options.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: You guys, thank you so much for your reviews and alerts and follows. I am planning to make this a slow burn story. But also, if you read my other stories, some one on one time is coming their way soon.

* * *

Jack has the decency to call ahead to make sure Kim is at home. She is and she sounds tired.

"Hey, I heard about your family business trip," he ventures and Kim snorts.

"Yeah, brilliant idea concocted by my parents." Jack is gratified that she is reluctant to go. He fancies it is partially because she does not want to be away from him either.

"So, I am coming over... You know, if I don't get the chance to see you before you go. I thought I should at least see you off..."

Oh... my... god... How lame does he sound right now?

Jack has not time to worry about his conversational skills, because Kim makes a breathy little noise that is all surprise and anticipation and he thinks that he is doing well with the whole talking thing.

"Ohh... OK... I am here. My parents will be home soon from work. You are welcome to stay for dinner."

When Jack knocks on the door, and even though he expects it, she still catches him totally off-guard. She's wearing a tight navy top that shows off enough cleavage to give him flashbacks to the last night's dream, and a tiny polka dot shorts that leaves him wondering how small her underwear has to be to fit under there. And just like that he is hot and bothered.

"Hey," she says, as cheerful as ever - but she's a little flushed and her eyes seem especially bright so it seems like he's not the only one with flustered from the other night. "Long time no see."

"What'd I tell you? You can't get rid of me that easy."

She smiles and he smiles back, and they stand there in the foyer of her house like a couple of idiots. Like, they only almost kissed yesterday, nothing should be different, but, damn, everything is different and all he wants to do is kiss her senseless.

This is exactly why he wasn't ever supposed to give in –- Kim Crawford is like the freaking black hole in space and time and he might never pull himself out of this _thing_ alive.

She nods and starts walking inside the house. He's right behind her, and he becomes painfully aware that his friend is all grown up – because right now, it's cruel and unusual punishment to watch her hips and butt sway right there in front of him and not be able to touch her.

"There's Jack. Staying for dinner?" Mrs. Crawford nearly sing-songs as he and Kim come through the door.

He smiles obligingly, "If you'll have me."

Mrs. Crawford happily nods, "we always cook too much. You will be doing me a favor. Come, children, help me set up the table."

This is not the first time he ate with the Crawfords, so everything should be familiar – except somehow the _thing_ with Kim has changed the dynamic, like he's navigating a mine field just by entering her house.

She takes the plates from the cabinet and heads for the table. For a moment, he just stands there, listening absently to Kim and her mom discussing the merits of replacing all the butter in Nana's recipes with something lighter. He spies the pitcher of sweet tea and makes a beeline for it – but just at the last minute, Kim moves over to grab a potholder and then she's right between him and the counter as he reaches for a pitcher. His chest bumps against her back, and he's not sure who it is that lets out a little gasp but it rattles through him like thunder.

"Oh, sorry," she says, sounding a little breathless. "I'm in the way…"

She takes a step toward the stove and he takes a step backward to the other side of the room, grabbing the pitcher.

"No problem."

He puts it on the island and leans back against the counter to watch as she pulls a baking dish out of the oven.

"Smells good," he offers.

She smiles at him over her shoulder.

"Nana's recipe. With all the butter. Think you can handle it?" She laughs, tilting her head in what he's starting to think of as a very sexy way.

"Well, it's really the cook that makes the difference, right?"

Her smile is soft and just a little bit sly, and he beams in her direction.

She's still smiling, but she lowers her head a little shyly and tucks her hair behind her ear. He wants to taste the exposed curve of her neck so damn badly that he has to bite his tongue to keep it in his mouth.

"I guess we'll see if you like my cooking," she says it with a smile that suggests so much more than just cooking. Hot damn...

He grins and takes a step toward her because, screw it, he's just going to kiss her for a minute while Kim's mom is out of the room and get it out of his system. She tilts her head back, anticipating his every move, and he's just about to lean down and –

"Kim! Dad is here," her mom calls from the entryway. "We can eat."

Jack groans out his frustration, and she looks up at him apologetically, but she's biting a lip in a way that suggests that maybe she's just as frustrated as he is. He helps her carry the rest of the food to the table, and he winds up sitting directly across from her - which means he's forced to look at her every time he glances up from his plate. They keep catching one another's eyes too, and it's like she knows that he's mentally removing her clothing one piece at a time and he knows that she's doing the same with him and it's the hottest staring contest that he's ever had in his life. He accepts that there's something seriously wrong with him because he's turned on with her family yammering on all around them.

The collective groan of satisfaction signals the end to dinner, and Kim starts clearing the table. When she leans over to grab his plate, he can feel her breasts press against his back, smell the warm floral scent of her perfume (like roses in the rain) and he clenches his jaw so tightly that it almost hurts. He wonders if she's doing this on purpose, torturing him with some kind of intention in mind. If she's trying to wear him down or coax him into committing some atrocity or another, she's doing a bang-up job – hell, he'd even agree to move to Japan with her to be a street artist if she asked him right now.

He's starting to feel a little too much like a caged animal for his tastes, so he gets up and takes a lap around the table, offering to put the food away.

He's seriously got to get this thing with Kim settled if he ever wants to get control of his damn head again.

Her dad starts talking about their upcoming trip along the coast and Jack is forced to give his opinion on various cities and their landmarks. This is actually a pretty good distraction from his lecherous thoughts about the man's daughter. He's lost track of her for the past few minutes, but then she's sidling up to him all discretely where he's leaning back against one of the bar stools and offering him a fresh glass of tea.

"We should talk at some point," she says quietly. "Right?"

He bobs his head, feeling just a bit uneasy. "That's probably a good idea."

Of course, he has no clue how they're going to disappear from the living room without setting off warning bells. He's not sure what possible excuse he can come up with to get her alone that doesn't make it totally obvious that there are some serious sparks arcing between them at the moment.

Fortunately, Kim thinks well on her feet.

"Hey, Jack," she says, loud enough so that her parents can hear. "I had looked at that scholarship offer and had couple of questions. You have seen one like that before. Think you can help me understand it?"

She smiles and flutters her lashes in a ridiculously cartoonish way, so he sighs, acting properly put upon.

"I guess."

He follows her across the room, and up the stairs and just like that, without any pain or fuss, they're alone in her bedroom. He's only been in here once or twice, but it's exactly as he remembers, with all its bright colors and her scarves hanging from everywhere.

He sits gingerly on the edge of her bed, watching as she closes the door behind them. When she turns to face him, there's something so open and vulnerable in her expression that it makes him a little uncomfortable.

"You think it is a mistake to start anything," she says, with a surprising lack of accusation in her voice. "That's what you're going to say."

He shakes his head automatically – he was about to kiss in her in the kitchen an hour ago. How much of a mistake could he really pretend it is?

"No. That's not what I was going to say." He lifts his shoulders helplessly. "Honestly, I don't know what to say."

She sits beside him, tucking her knee up under her, and he forces himself to stop staring at the creamy vanilla skin at the inside of her thighs.

"But the thing is, I'm pretty sure that you are going to say that. I mean, for you, Kim." He turns a bit so he can look her in the eye – he owes her that. "I mean, if you are going to Otai... which you should. It's a great opportunity... oh, wow, I said that exact phrase out loud and in my head so many times by now, I really hate it..."

"Jack," she sighs, and her hand lands on his knee. "I haven't decided anything yet."

He laughs, dropping his hand on top of hers.

"OK." He looks at her, and her eyes are so wide and bright that it would be nearly impossible to lie to her. "It's not like I haven't thought about it, you know. I have. For longer than I'll ever admit but… I used to run through all these scenarios in my head where we would fight and break up and then, if you are hurt, then everything between us is ruined, Kim, probably for good, and that risk seems way too high. And now, now there is Otai..."

She nods, and her chin's trembling just a bit so he thinks she might cry. This is it, he thinks. It's already started.

"But then," he says carefully. "I think about the other night and never touching you again and I could seriously lose my mind." She turns her hand over on his knee and winds her fingers through his, which feels way more erotic than it really should. "And maybe because you may leave in the end of the summer, but I am a little selfish and want to try this thing with you. Now when there's the potential that I might have to wait for you to come back to even have this chance again."

She bobs her head slowly like she understands. Her hair falls all around her face, and he can't stop himself from reaching out and tucking it behind her ear. Her smile is the soft and kind that always seems to get him, and he leans in so he can finally kiss like he wanted to when he first saw her tonight.

The kiss is... amazing. Like, his brain scrambles for a moment and all he knows is Kim's incredibly soft lips, sweet and gentle. It's short and not too naughty, but also so long in the making that he is just happy it finally happened. She wraps her arms around his neck and melts into his body in a way that makes him want to say, screw it, and throw her on the bed with her family on the other side of the door. She pulls away, her face pressed to the side of his neck so he can feel her breath down the collar of his shirt.

"Why can't we just act like regular people?" she whispers, her lips tickling against his skin. "People who haven't spent three years in a really confusing, really complicated kind of friendship? I mean, don't people just like one another and see where it goes? They don't make promises or guarantees. They don't worry about the risks."

"I don't know what—"

"We don't have to decide anything. Do we? I mean, can't we just …" She shrugs, and her shirt shifts on her shoulder so he can see the lacy, pale blue strap of her bra. "See what happens?"

He smirks. "By see what happens, you mean have more kissing, right? Because I like kissing you."

She laughs, lifting her face from his neck.

"Maybe," she teases coyly, and she is surprisingly good at playing the vixen. "If that's what happens. It took me the whole day to come up with this 'see what happens' plan," she says lightly. "But it was the best I could do."

He smiles – his ego seriously appreciates the fact that she's spent the day trying to figure out a way to deal with the thing. Admittedly, she probably wasted the effort since the sight of her in her tight little top and those shorts, and the flirty looks over dinner are all the persuasion he really needs.

"Really?"

She nods. "Actually, I didn't come up it with until I saw you tonight. I was kind of desperate."

"See what happens?" he repeats. "Well, let's do it. Let's see where it takes us, this thing. We really should call it something better. But we can do that later, let's do the kissing again."

She blushes, but the hungry look in her eyes tells him that she doesn't disagree. She swoops in and kisses him so deeply and slowly that it only proves how right he is. She is a black hole and he is happy to be lost forever. Her lips are tentative at first, but grow confident and her tongue peaks out to lick at his. Jack feels like his entire being is centered at his mouth. It is impossible to feel so turned on from just a kiss, but here he is: kissing Kim and wishing they could do more. He reaches for her hips, trying to drag her into his lap, but she pulls away abruptly. He watches in a daze as she stands in front of him and smooths her hands over her shorts.

"My parents," she says pointedly.

She cocks her head in a way that says she's way too pleased with herself, and while he's seriously frustrated and annoyed, he has to admire how she can keep a cool head.

"Kim, we just kissed twice..." Jack complains, but is interrupted.

"What are you guys doing in here?" Kim's dad pushes open the door and pokes his head in. "You've been gone for like ten minutes."

"Jack is no help with the scholarship offer. He doesn't remember much from his own experience." Kim says with a very believable fond exasperation.

""Hey! It's been a while," Jack replies and inwardly marvels at Kim's cool and collected demeanor.

"Well, let's go get some dessert guys. It's a peach cobbler." Kim's dad adds with a smart little smile that has Jack questioning his and Kim's acting skills.

They end up having a cobbler with ice cream and Kim's parents laugh at the appetite he shows. Chuck Crawford reminisces about his high school and college athlete days, when there was never enough food and he could eat sugar with impunity.

Jack thinks that Chuck really would have liked to have a son.

He is proven right, because when Jack leaves Chuck sees him to the car and tells him that their first stop would be Monterey and that they should be back in three weeks.

Three weeks is not long, but he only has till the end of the summer for this thing with Kim to define itself. And he just got to kissing her. He wants more. More time with her and more kissing. He needs more time with her...

The beginning of a plan forms in his head and he sends her a text.

 _When you said we'd see what happens, I assumed something would actually happen. I am sad I didn't get my kiss goodnight._

He waits and soon enough she responds.

 _Don't be greedy. You got more in one day than in three years. XOXO._

Jack goes home smiling. He has a girl, he has a plan, he has a whole summer...


	4. Chapter 4

Jack only has one night and a day to convince everyone of his plan. He starts with his parents, who are normally a reasonable bunch, but you can never be sure. His mom, he knows, would be on his side. She always liked Kim and if it was up to her they would have been dating since day one. To her, Kim is the epitome of a daughter she would have liked to have: Kim is pretty, likes to dress up, strong, stubborn, can take care of herself and is sassy in a way that his mom loves.

His dad is another matter. He is more reserved and always been quiet and studious. Sometimes Jack thinks that his mom and dad are total opposites. Still, it works for them. There is also his Grandpa. Jack is confident that Grandpa would be on his side too. He liked the idea of his grandson with another martial artist.

They are still awake when he gets back home.

"How's dinner at the Crawfords?" His mom asks slyly, hiding a smile.

"Good. Delicious. There was peach cobbler."

"And how is Kim? Is she ready to go to Otai?" Grandpa was immensely pleased that Jack got the offer. Of course that didn't happen. He wasn't disappointed, saying that he didn't need Otai to become the Grand Master and neither would Jack. Still, he knew the recognition that came with being selected for the academy.

"She says she hasn't decided yet. And now her dad wants her to come with him on his business trip. For three weeks..." Jack cant hide the disappointment even if tried.

His mom is immediately cognizant of all the implications. "Oh, honey, how awful. Where are they going? When does she have to respond to Otai?" She looks at him with dismay, but also determination. See, his mom is the best. She knows, of course she does, how he feels about Kim. And probably figured he wants Kim to stay here. And needs more time spent with Kim to convince her to stay.

"They are going along the Coast up north. First step is Monterey. She needs to answer before the summer is over."

"I am sure if you only told her..."

"I did. Sort of. I think. Argh... we had talked about our thing and how we want to see where it takes us..."

"Truly poetic, son. They don't teach Shakespeare, Keats and Burns anymore at school?" His dad added laughing at Jack's expression.

"You are one to talk! You just said 'hey, saw you in library. Wanna start a study group?' if I recall," his mom cut in quickly and dad just smugly returned.

"It worked. So I rest my case." Here they stare at each other in a truly sappy way and Jack rather not think about his parents being young and having the same thing as him and Kim.

"Well, my speech worked too. But she is going to be away for three weeks... after a break through three weeks is like momentum being lost, you know." Jack sounds desperate.

"Oh, wow, darling, I think he just spoke of the laws of physics without realizing it. Kim is a miracle worker." His dad says and it's clear he enjoys Jack's predicament.

"Ha-ha-ha. I need help, not sarcasm." Jack bites out.

"What are you thinking?" Grandpa offers seriously.

"I want to come with her." Jack blurts out. His family looks at him stupefied. "I mean not with her, but to follow her. Not follow, follow her. I am not a stalker. Just, if I am there at the same places she is, we can keep the momentum going." Jack finishes in a rush. Now that he said it out loud, it sounds weird. Right? Oh, god, he is a weird stalker. See, Kim is driving him crazy and they haven't even dated properly.

"So a road trip. And you know their first stop." Grandpa says.

"Yeah, Mr. Crawford told me."

"Oh, Chuck told you? I guess he doesn't mind you dating his daughter..." his mom sounds pleased with this news.

"Well, you know we won't let you go by yourself and your mom and I can't go with you for such a long time." His dad offered and everyone turns to look at Grandpa, who looks pensive.

"Well, I say, one achieves greatness by achieving balance in his life. If Kim is who you need for balance in your life, then let's do it. Road trip?"

* * *

Kim sat at the breakfast table at the hotel feeling as excited as Jerry at the prospect of the test. Dad dragged her to this trip just as she and Jack reached an understanding. The night before they left, Jack and her spent most of the day together and she she was still blushing from the epic make out they ended up having. Jack, no doubt because of his numerous dates, was a very good kisser. Which is why it was so hard to leave him to go on this trip.

It's already been a hard year for Kim, waiting for something to happen with Jack, and then it did and she hasn't even had the whole summer with him. Three. Damn. Weeks. And her dad is not even here with her on the first stop. And there isn't a family in the area.

Expelling another heavy sigh Kim downs the rest of her coffee in one quick gulp, the cup clattering back to its matching plate with more force than necessary and startling a woman reading on a nearby table. Throwing her an apologetic smile, she stuffs her wallet and phone into her purse and exits onto the sidewalk teeming with tourists. The hotel is in the middle of the Cannery Row and at least most of the attractions are relatively close by.

Trying not to feel dazed by the sheer number of people (come on, Great Wall of China had a lot of people, but then her mind supplies that she wasn't alone there) she finds her bearings and starts towards the Fisherman's Warf as soon as she spots the sign.

When the arch eventually comes into view, Kim stops for a moment, ignoring the nudge and knock of people as they try to pass her by. Shaking her head lightly, she pulls out her phone and takes a picture of the scene before uploading it to Twitter and finally tweeting her whereabouts with a "Surprise, guess where I am?"

She hasn't told her girlfriends about the new development with Jack. It's not that they wouldn't be excited. Grace probably would give her a hug that would be too long and too understanding – the kind of hug she'd gotten far too used to this past year – and then would demand the details of the encounter. It's just that it is so new and fragile... Some part of Kim is deathly afraid that the two day old relationship - that she herself set up as 'see where it goes' - would stall and fade while they are apart. Maybe that's why she said 'see what happens,' because she was setting her expectations low. See, Kim would argue that she is independent girl focused on more than just romance, but Jack, this thing with him, was so much more than some romance... Jack and her, their history, all the adventures, all the fights side by side, all the tension, all the loyalty, all of it made the thing with Jack so much more than romance and friendship. If it didn't work out, it might break her heart.

She thinks of Jack and what he might say, and her heart races just a little as she remembers the last time she saw him. She was packing and he came to help. She showed him her outfits, which he tried to veto as too cute and too sexy. She laughed that she can't live in sweats and baggy shirts, but when she turned around Jack's dark eyes were almlst black and intense. She flushed hot and stopped with half folded dress in her hands as he got up, walked to her and said in a hoarse voice that even in baggy sweats she'd be fucking hot. Unexpected curse only emphasised Jack's mood. He was looming over her and she unthinkingly took a step backwards. He followed, until she was backed into the wall and he stopped, leaving barely an inch between them. The energy between them flared white hot and she was not sure who moved first, but her hands were in his hair and his on her waist and back of her head, moving her for a better angle. They kissed like they did not need air. Soon she was light headed and had dropped her head back against the wall dragging mouthfuls of air while Jack kissed and nipped at her neck and she found out that a spot where her neck and shoulder met was very sensitive. Jack tortured her and himself by kissing that spot and moving his hands close to her breasts, but not quite there, and she was fairly sure that her panties were drenched and he was hard. By the time they stopped, she had a hickey the size of tennis ball on her neck and Jack had to step away from her into the farthest corner of the room to calm down.

They avoided too much temptation the rest of the day and she completed her packing. They talked about random things like they used to and everything was like always, except Jack would occasionally catch her eye, brown eyes dark and tempting across the room, the slight flush to his cheeks, his lips a little fuller from their kisses, and wow, that boy can throw her off track, even from miles away.

Still, it's better to be flustered than worried about the state of their thing.

She reaches a road crossing then, and falls behind the rest of the waiting crowd all bottlenecked and pressed close, smiling at the little red man on the traffic signal and waiting for it to turn green. Her phone vibrates in her pocket a second later and Kim quickly presses view, eagerly anticipating the comments and questions from his friends (really, just Jack). Instead there is only one comment from Milton.

 **KimCrawfordCA** Is that Monterey Fisherman's Wharf? Enjoy the surprise!

Yeaaahhh…she has no idea what that even means but then again, this is Milton. This Wharf is probably historic and significant, and not just a place that smells of fish.

Embracing the full tourist experience, Kim opens the guide flyer from the hotel and starts wondering the Cannery Row.

It's all very nice as much as a a boardwalk and bunch of seafood restaurants can be but she can't help but feel numb to it all. She tries to shake it off. Instead she starts towards the line trailing out of the factory, throwing a distracted glance around the area and -

Wait.

Is that…?

No. It couldn't be.

He wouldn't be in Monterey and if he was, she would know about it.

Its looks like him. Dressed in his usual T-shirt with matching button down shirt over it, jeans and hightops. His hair is like Jack's though – soft, thick and straight – and the tall figure certainly looks like Jack's, at least her pulse seems to think so. Kim watches as he checks the phone and then his surroundings and it's a moment before Kim realizes she's the one on the move, and with every step she takes her heart quickens with a growing flair of certainty. Smooth tan skin, long legs with slender hips, kissable lips... Anticipation fires deep in her belly and by the time she reaches him, the grin is etched wide across her cheeks because he's here. It's -

"Jack?"

He jumps a little nearly dropping his phone as he spins, his smile is as big as hers, "Kim!"

"What are you…?" she says just as he blurts, "surprise" and Kim laughs while Jack shakes his head in amusement and removes his sunglasses and hooks them into his jeans pocket. He wants to look at her, really look at her.

"What?" Kim blinks dazedly, seeming at a loss for words. "When...Why?"

"Wow. Kim Crawford loses the ability to articulate." He winks, extra smug when he says, "I've still got it."

She rolls her eyes but there's amusement dancing there as she swats at him playfully. "Jack Brewer, what the hell are you doing here?"

Jack shrugs, blushes a little and then says seriously, "I told you, I am selfish. I wanted to spend as much with you this summer as I can. Even if it means being at a ... Fisherman's Wharf. You don't mind tagalongs, do you?"

Kim responds by jumping at him, throwing her hands around his neck to kiss him full on lips. He laughs into the kiss and swings her around and Kim was never more happy to be at a place that smells of fish.


	5. Chapter 5

When they stop their hug and kissing (there were some _awws_ from the passers-bys and Jack felt a little self-conscious) Kim blurts out, "its not that I am not happy to see you, but how did you manage this trip?"

"My grandfather came with me. He is fishing right now so you and I can do whatever we want."

"I didn't know you grandfather liked fishing." Kim says absently.

"He does now," is all that Jack says. She doesn't need to know that his Grandpa had a whole 'talk' with Jack about separating love from lust; affection from friendship, gratitude from loyalty, and so on. He then went on to talk about responsible behavior and respect for girls. And then he threatened Jack within an inch of his life if he hurt Kim unnecessarily because that would mean that he and Jack's parents failed to raise an honorable man. That was one conversation Jack does not want to revisit.

Kim smiles at this and then throws her arms around him once more. "What was that for?"

She shrugs, tucking a lock of loose hair behind her ear and staring at her feet for a moment. "Nothing, it's just really nice to see you." He smiles wide at that because he honestly couldn't agree more.

"When..." she continues, hesitant. "When I agreed to come here with my dad I didn't account for maybe feeling a bit, I don't know -"

"Lonely?"

She nods, though Jack can tell it's not all she wants to say.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm fine but…" She sighs and stares at the river with a frown. "Earlier I was taking pictures and it was wonderful but I just kind of wished there was someone there to share it with, to say " _hey, Kim, this is nice"_ or something like that. It's ridiculous. I should be fine by myself if I plan to go abroad..." she trails off because it is a thorny subject.

"No, I'm pretty sure it makes you human. It's only the first day, Kim. Cut yourself some slack." He hesitates for a second - he's not sure he can press his case too hard - before he strokes her upper arm and pats it in a gesture he hopes is soothing. "Traveling alone is a big deal."

The smile crawling across her cheeks makes his insides flip and tumble and they stare at each other longer than necessary – in all the ways he's used to now and all the ways he's not – until Kim tears her gaze away to focus on refolding her map. Jack's heart feels like it might crash through his chest because _holy crap_ she looks so pretty and tempting and she's _here_.

 _And he's missed her._

He's not sure why that surprises him the most but it does.

"So, what's next on the list?" says, changing the subject.

"The rest of the Row and the Aquarium. Then we are free to do as we wish." Kim smiles her little sly smile that means trouble for him.

His chest tightens at the thought that they can have some alone time... Yeah, this was a good idea to come for this road trip.

"We'll have fun together, right?"

"Yes."

She draws out the word a little slowly and her Southern drawl comes out. Jack loves her Southern accent, it makes even the simplest of words sound interesting, but right now it sounds downright dirty... Not now, Brewer!

So he fixes his most charming smile, "Well then," he offers her the crook of his arm, "shall we?"

* * *

Kim steps closer to the glass to look at the ... fish. It probably has a proper name and if they had a guided tour they'd know. But Kim and Jack are careful to stay away from the crowd and have some modicum of privacy.

She stares at the swish and sway of the water, all too aware of her pulse - erratic - thanks to the young man beside her, his bare arm brushing hers with every breath.

Feeling a little numb she pinches the skin on the back of her hand, rolling it between thumb and forefinger until it's stinging red and she shivers and winces at the pain.

She's not delusional. She's not imagining things.

Jack is here and the relief on his face at finding her was palpable. And the things he said… made her heart skip. It's skipping now, just thinking about it. And god, the way he clung to her… She can still feel his hand hot against her back as if he burned her. She'd check for marks if she could.

"Yeaaahhh…all I'm seeing is the water - oh wait, now it's moving." He meets her smile before scanning the view, nudging her arm with his elbow. "So, what exactly are we looking at?"

"How would I know? I knew we should have paid for the audio tour," she mutters, ignoring the feel of his gaze and the knowing lilt to his lips. Kim pulled out the flyer yet again and looked through the section on the aquarium. "Now let's see. So, this is either Fanfin Anglerfish or Fangtooth. Seriously, are these actual names of species or just nicknames for the actual fish. I don't think I ever saw uglier fish. Look at its ... teeth? Are these teeth or fangs?" She presses a fingertip against the glass and whatever that sea creature is with its spiky teeth swoops in at it. Kim hastily pulls her hand away only to see Jack grin at her amused, "Oh shut up."

"I didn't say anything."

"You didn't have to, judgey face." Her eye catches something other than his amusement and she gasps and pats his forearm, the movement quick and distracted. There is a very pretty little fish with shiny bright pink scales of two tones and it swims right in front of them. "Oooh, oooh look, Jack! Oh, it's so pretty! Pictures, I need pictures." She delves into her purse for her phone, bouncing enthusiastically, stealing a glance in his direction and halting at the look on his face. "What?"

"Nothing, it's just being this excited about a fish shouldn't be this adorable."

She looks at Jack shyly because in all of their long acquaintance he never used 'adorable' to describe her.

"Kim, stop with the face." Jack says uncertain.

"The face?"

"Yeah, you know, the face with the big fluttering eyes, and lashes, and the…lips…" His gaze drops to her mouth and he swallows hard, shifting further away.

Kim bites the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling but she can't think of his reaction right now or she'll get distracted and then they'll never get out of this fishbowl.

It's been quiet between them for a while when Kim eventually glances at Jack across the hall where he's leaning against the railing, phone in hand. He's already focused on her, his expression verging on wistful and so unexpectedly tender that the breath catches in her throat. His smile crawls slowly to meet his eyes, wrinkling the skin in the corners. They furrow deeper as he smiles wider and Kim steels the inclination to look away, smiling back just as brightly, holding his gaze as she treads closer without any control of her feet.

Noting the fleeting graze of his eyes down and back up the length of her body - he's done that a lot today, much to her delight - Kim has to swallow hard to drown the dance of butterflies in her chest. She can control everything else but the damn butterflies. She's filled, startled almost, with the impulse to kiss him, her lips near tingling in anticipation, and wonders if that's wise.

Still, her resolve weakens, just a whisper, a heartbeat, when he looks at her like that. It always does.

Their bodies now inches apart, Jack's Adam's apple bobs repeatedly as Kim reaches out to him, hand edging closer and closer, and even she's unaware of its path until her fingers curl around the sunglasses still hooked in his pocket. His stomach muscles tense beneath the t-shirt stretched tight there, his eyebrows rising in disbelief as she plucks at them and settles them over her eyes.

"How do I look in these? I wanted to try this shape for myself..."

He huffs out a shocked breathy laugh of delight. "Uh, yeah, you look... good... I mean they look good on you."

Kim's heart nearly jumps at the flustered way Jack is talking and she relishes (sue her) the power she has to fluster this boy.

"Oh, well thanks," removes the glasses quickly and hooks them back into his jeans. She doesn't linger but she still feels a little burst of adrenaline when Jack inhales sharply at the graze of her fingertips against the solidness of his hip.

They hugged before numerous times. They sparred before numerous times. They even danced. But she has done this deliberate teasing touching in public and it is so exciting.

There's heat and intent in his eyes and his voice is a little croaky when he asks, "Anything else of mine you wanna try?"

The moment he says it, she can see that he's realized how it sounded, but he does not correct himself and just looks at her.

"Don't think so. You are taller than me and it would be way too big for me."

She sees his eyes go wide and catches on to what she just said and she is flushing in embarrassment.

Their eyes meet and they burst out laughing, the awkwardness is forgotten as they move to the other hall keeping a decent distance between each other.

After a few minutes of silence listening to the low chatter in the hall as they watch more sea creatures swim past them, Jack bumps her shoulder with his.

"Hey, Kim, this is nice."

Kim's heart flutters madly and she returns the gesture all too happily. "Yeah, it really is," she says, watching the smile stretch across Jack's face.

* * *

Jack is on freaking pins and needles (blame the blonde girl for all this nervousness and flowery way of talking) since they left the seafood shack at the end of the Row. They could have gone to a decent restaurant, but Kim insisted she is not dressed for it. Jack can't find anything wrong with the way she is dressed. Kim is wearing skinny jeans and a crop top with a jacket over and there are glimpses of skin every time she moves.

They are almost by the hotel where she is staying with her dad and he probably has to go check in with his Grandpa, but the idea that he might leave here without touching her is seriously enough to make him cry like a little girl, but he wants her to set the pace. He mentions where his hotel is and that his Grandpa is probably there already. She tilts her head, like she's considering his words very carefully, and then gifts him with a soft, serious smile. He watches, nearly mesmerized, as she comes to stand right next to him sliding her hands around his waist. His hand slides up the inside her jacket like it has a mind of its own, his fingers just teasing below the hem of her top, and his skin must be cold because she shivers as he tries to hold her steady. Her hands moved to his face and she traces her fingers along either side of his jaw, tilting his head back and rising on her toes so she can kiss him.

She may taste like crabs they just ate, but the sensation of her mouth over his, her tongue sliding slowly against his, goes straight to his head, where it fuzzies his brain and makes his skin feel prickly and hot. He clutches a fistful of her top, and she leans into him, letting him hold her up.

"I think we should move indoors," she whispers against his lips. "I've been thinking about it ever since you left my house the other night and I don't want to give anyone a show."

He nods incoherently, not sure if he's agreeing or approving, and grabs her hand and they race to her hotel.

The trip on the elevator is an exercise in frustration, because there are other people and they stop on every floor. When they are finally in the suite, she drags him to her room and his hands are on her hips to pull her to him. Somehow they stumble to the bed and fall back against the covers and he blindly kicks his shoes off as she continues her slow, deep assault on his mouth. He loves the weight of her on him, all soft where he's hard, and when she scrambles on top of him to move around, the feeling is almost too good to stand. He groans into her mouth and he feels her smile and yeah, she's enjoying this so much, which isn't a surprise but somehow manages to turn him on even more.

She rises above him to straddle his lap, and her hair falls around her face in a tangled mess so he reaches up to push it back. Her mouth has the smudged, rubbed-raw look of someone who's been thoroughly kissed, which only makes him want to kiss her more. But her hands drop onto his chest and she is exploring him, his upper body, bunching the fabric up, but not quiet slipping under the shirt, and trailing fire everywhere her fingertips graze over his skin. She moves her hands up his neck and into his hair and it makes her rock her hips against his again until she has him cursing under his breath, digging his hands into her waist to keep her anchored in just the right spot.

Oh... this is too much, Jack thinks, and yet its not enough. He is no exactly sure what Kim's sexual experience is (and he'd rather not think about it, because that means thinking about her and other guys), but he does not want to put her off or scare her.

There are plenty of things to admire about Kim – her smarts, her drive, her passion, her competitiveness - but right now, he's profoundly grateful for how thorough she is, how meticulous and methodical. There isn't an inch of his chest, shoulders and stomach that her fingers don't trace over, and when she's done, he is a mess of need and want. She returns her mouth on him and trails her lips and tongue over any exposed part of his upper body, the silky soft ends of her hair brushing over his skin to make the whole thing even better. He makes embarrassing, whiny noises deep his throat that he hopes she can't hear, but just when he thinks he can't take much more, her fingers are at his belt and she slowly drags the shirt up. Nnnoooo... Need to know how far can they go.

He forces his eyes open and his arms to move so he can hug her to him, preventing any more of this sweet torture and flipping them around. She is under him, her hair fanned out on one side from the motion and she looks so beautiful. It is ridiculous how good she feels beneath him, her entire body fitting under his tidily so there's barely a single spot where they aren't pressed together.

When they made out in her room the day she was packing, it was all hot and kind of unplanned. But now, when it's all premeditated, she looks to be a little nervous, a little bit shy or timid. It is so unlike the usually confident Kim that Jack forces himself to go slow. At least she wants him and she doesn't seem the least bit embarrassed about it.

So he gets rid of her jacket, throwing it behind him and following up with his button down. Her crop top has thin straps and he can see a little of her bra, which is white with purple polka dots and lacy trim, and God, it makes her breasts look fantastic. He returns to her lips once more, red from earlier kisses. It is perhaps his new favorite past time - kissing Kim. He eventually travels lower to the neck, where he knows she is sensitive. It's only now he realises that he left a hickey there, as it becomes darker (did he just eat the concealer off?) as he continues to lavish attention on that spot. She whimpers again and he is worried that he hurt her. He lifts his head to look at her and is struck dumb: she is gorgeous with skin flushed pink, kiss swollen lips and glassy eyes.

"Did it hurt?" He mumbles quietly and she is shaking her head no.

"Just... feels... so... good..." she whispers in a voice that is much lower than her normal and it is so sexy that Jack nearly groans and drops his head into the junction of her neck and shoulder.

He is desperately trying not to hump her but her top, and the peekaboo bra are right there so he finds himself pulling the top a little lower and tracing his tongue along the scalloped edge of the cups until she bucks her hips and moans at the ceiling. She sounds even more winded when he moves his mouth down her flat stomach, where her skin is so pale and smooth that his biting kisses immediately leave it pink and flushed.

"Jaaaack..." she moans and he has to stop before it goes to far.

He crawls back to face her and asks, sounding ragged, " too much? You only have to tell me..."

She blushes bright pink (so adorable, yes, adorable) and sort of mumbles something that sounds like "not enough..." and he is all for going back where he was, but he pauses to look at her. She is turned on alright, but is also squirming and avoiding eye contact with him. He stills and waits until she looks at him.

"Kim, I am serious. You tell me if you don't want anything, OK?"

She blushes even brighter and looks so embarrassed that he feels he has to do something drastic to get her out of her head.

"I haven't done it, it," he blurts and she opens her eyes wide at him. "I... I had girl go down on me, once. That's it."

"Who?" Kim asks and then looks away. "It doesn't matter." She sounds upset and while part of him is gratified that she is maybe jealous, much larger part of him feels her unease as his own. He gets off her and she follows him up.

He doesn't let her move away physically or emotionally and simply hugs her to him tightly. "Kim, you don't know that girl. She was older and was far more experienced than me. Believe me, even though I got to come I was more uncomfortable than satisfied. I didn't like her one bit and only did it, because I am a teenager. I thought I would like it, meaningless sex and such, but my mind didn't let me enjoy the physical too much. I felt horrible and even apologized to her afterwards. She laughed at me, so my foray into casual sex was a total disaster."

She relaxed as he told her his story and by the end of it she returned the hug and was running gentle hand over his back.

"Well, I haven't done that yet. I don't think anyone saw me without my bra on, unless Jerry is spying on me while I shower..." she trails off and looks at him a little shy.

"First, Jerry is not spying on you. I'd sort him out if he tried. Second, how is it possible that none of your idiot dates even try? I mean, I am glad, because otherwise I have to find a reason to beat them up, but still..."

"Because they are idiots," Kim says and looks at him in a way that he hears 'they are not you.'

There is only one way to respond to that and Jack goes back to his favorite pastime.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: I am trying to balance the development of their relationship as a couple, without the rest of the gang there. So, Kim and Jack spend time just the two of them (with occasional supporting characters) and maybe discussing the Otai and their _thing._ There is also the developing physical relationship, which I am trying to slowly build up. I hope you like that.

* * *

It's a little after nine in the morning when Kim wanders out of her hotel, waving _bye_ to her dad who is being picked up by the corporate car. Yawning loudly she hooks her purse across her body and thinks of the day ahead. They are in San Jose and it's their second day here. Last night she and her dad met the family at their house and after the reminiscing and dining and conversation, they stayed up way too late.

Jack and his grandfather are supposed to catch up to them today. Kim misses him, but they keep up talking and texting and, besides, he is supposed to be here today!

Wandering out into the sunshine, the brightness has her eyes snapping shut for a few moments to adjust. It's early enough that it's still fairly cool and Kim wonders if a top with jacket and denim shorts had been the best idea.

She's deliberating whether to go back to the hotel and change _just in case_ when she blinks in surprise at the sight of Jack slouched against the lamppost, holding two Starbucks cups and looking off into the distance.

He must catch her movement in his periphery as he turns and straightens immediately, his smile widening as she ambles towards him. His eyes are obscured by his glasses but Kim's pulse still quickens a little, just by the sight of him now. In the shortening space between them she replays all their moments from Monterey because it's impossible not to with him standing there like that, waiting for her.

"Hey. I thought you were coming this afternoon?" she leans up to buss a little kiss on his cheek.

"We made good time. And I thought you might need this," Jack says, and hands over a still-warm recyclable cup.

"Aww. That's so sweet. Thank you." She smiles gratefully, miming a clinking 'cheers!' with the cup before taking a sip. It's a little bitter but warm and much better than the cheap vending machine coffee she could barely stomach that morning. "Mmm. You were right. I _did_ need this."

"Yeah." He chuckles softly. "You were kind of out of it on the phone last night."

Kim hopes the wince doesn't show on her face. She basically fell asleep while on the phone with him. God, it was so embarrassing.

"Yeah. I'm sorry about that. I'll be better company today, I promise."

"Don't worry Kim, even half asleep you still hold a better conversation than most people. Besides, I was tired too."

"We'll take easy today." She grins and squints at him in the sunlight, shielding her eyes with a flattened palm against her forehead. "So…shall we?"

Sipping their coffees as they fall in step along the street, they soon dissolve into random chatter about Kim's cousins and their lives.

* * *

She's wearing shorts.

Not just any shorts but tiny short shorts that are doing the greatest things to her butt that Jack has ever seen. There's a tantalizing strip of worn and shredded material where her ass meets her thighs and he's pretty sure he caught a glimpse of her panties through the frayed jeans a couple of times.

Black. They are black.

And once she took off her jacket, Jack sees another crop top and they never really looked dangerous layered underneath those scarves she usually wears and thank god she does. It's not just the acres of smooth skin and a hint of cleavage so prominently on display, it's the delicate bumps of her spine that he kind of wants to trace with his fingers and tongue with touches and kisses all the way up to the arch of her neck.

 _Jesus_ , he's supposed to sightsee with her looking like this?

Kim holds his hand and smiles at him and licks her lips nervously (but it looks very seductive to him) and is slowly driving him insane. And he doesn't know if it's something about being alone in the strange city or something about her but he does know that it's not going to be long before he breaks all restraint and does something stupid like push her into a side alley and ravish her. He's just not strong enough (really, really not strong enough.)

"We're here."

The sound of Kim's voice jolts Jack from his deep steadying breaths, and he frowns as Kim waves her hands with a flourish in the direction of the city blocks in front of them.

"OK. Where are we exactly?"

"It's Japantown. Unless you want to see something else? There is that Winchester Haunted House..."

"Kim." His palms settle gently on her shoulders, her skin colder than he was expecting but so soft under his hands. "You want to come here, we'll go. Whatever you want."

She visibly perks up and he can't stop the things it does to his insides, how good it makes him feel to make her happy (he is a sap, he admits it).

Half a day later they're both sitting on the bench eating shaved ice with azuki beans, side by side. They had eaten sushi after they visited museum and the temple. They are admittedly tired now. The heat of the sun so palpable walking around the city is quickly stolen by the icy treat. Kim shivers and Jack doesn't think twice about putting his arm around her shoulder and ushering her close, brushing the goose-bumped flesh with the warmth of his palm. She blinks up at him beneath her lashes, surprise flashing in her eyes, cheeks a little flushed, and smiles softly in thanks, threading her arm around his waist and burrowing closer to his body heat.

It feels good. Real good.

Jack is pretty content with the silence, but Kim was a chatterbox today pointing out things and buildings. he guesses that this is as close to seeing Japan as it could be and part of him crumbles a little at this. it means she is thinking about Japan and Otai. But right now she is quiet. He eyes the side of her face but the angle is awkward and he can't really see anything except the flutter of her eyelashes.

"You're quiet. You okay?"

Kim shrugs and slips out from under his arm, propping her elbows on her knee and looking down at the melting sweet. It's a few minutes before she speaks.

"Being here is making me all wistful for something. And afraid. I don't even know. I feel…" She sighs, and it's heavier than he's ever heard it. "I feel really small and insignificant. I can't explain it. It's like, have you ever looked in the mirror for so long that you don't know who you are anymore? It feels like that. It's weird."

"Look, travel, big decisions do that sometimes. You're away from home and out of your comfort zone and I don't know. I guess you get a little perspective on life, like the things you left behind and stuff you could have done differently, or maybe where you see yourself in the future. It happens."

"You sound like you have some experience."

He shrugs, pressing his lips together in a downward sort of smile. "I have gone through that with my own offer, Kim. You get to stop and think about your life. I am not sure if I could have done things differently. Maybe some things. But, then, I would not be here right now."

 _With you_.

He doesn't say it but it lingers unsaid between them like so many other things, and by the way her neck undulates as she swallows and the look in her eyes, Jack knows she feels it too, knows he didn't _have_ to say it.

Kim licks her lips, cautious when she asks, "And it's a positive thing?"

"Definitely."

Kim smiles brightly as she straightens to press her cheek against Jack's upper arm, nestling as close as possible in her effort to comfort him. Jack drops a kiss into her hair.

"Did you mean what you said before?" he asks suddenly and she hums distractedly in response, her focus elsewhere. "About feeling insignificant?" he prompts.

Kim pulls back to look at him, brow briefly furrowed before the realization lights her face and smoothes the lines away. "Oh, not in _that_ way. I guess when I think about how big the world is and how much I haven't seen yet, I feel small then. But…I'm not sure I know who I am or where I'm going. That much is true."

"We can't know everything about ourselves, Kim, and half the fun is figuring it out. Alone or together." He watches her eyes glaze thoughtfully, and the fact that she's considering his advice has him holding out both arms before he even realizes. "Come here."

Her smile plays coy as she folds herself against him, one hand circling the small of his back as his arm tighten around her. He's pretty sure she can feel the racing thud of his heart against her ear, even more when he pushes her wind-swept hair out of his face, smoothing across the arch of her neck where it disappears into her hairline, and the skin seems so delicate there that it makes the touch almost too intimate.

Kim laughs and sighs all at once, the noise dulled slightly by his chest, and pulls away, clearing her throat a little awkwardly. "Okay, enough of this weird melancholy philosophical thing we've got going on."

"Hey, you started it."

"So now I'm finishing it." She gives a quick resolute nod and starts digging around in her purse, handing Jack an umbrella, map, wallet and compact mirror to hold before she pulls out her phone.

"No, not the pictures..." Jack whines exaggeratedly.

The sound of her giggle is glorious.

* * *

They are making their way back out of the rose garden (Jack rolls his eyes, but really, she wanted to, so its happening). He nudges her shoulder and mock wheezes out, "If this is you taking it easy, I don't want to know what the full schedule looks like."

She grins at him, eyes widening playfully as she gets an idea. "There is a pizza place near hotel. We can do a take out and go back to my hotel. Look, there is the light rail stop over there, I'll race you."

Jack's brow crinkles but he smiles, completely amused by her. "What?"

"Come on, I'll race you to the rail stop. Loser buys the pizza."

"Kim, you don't have to prove anything to me. I'm not -"

"Too late!"

Kim snatches herself out of his grasp, her hand tingling as she sets off down the steep path. For the briefest of moments her mind is completely free of everything and the feeling is invigorating. She is about to celebrate her victory when Jack rushes past, turning to grin triumphantly, eyes wild as he fists the air.

"Ha! I win. YES!"

Kim's mouth drops open and she can't stop herself from careening into his chest, hands latching onto his biceps to steady herself. "No fair!" she gasps out between stilted breaths.

Jack palms her hips firmly to help settle her and they stand there for a few minutes catching their breath.

"That'll teach you for challenging me. I'll have a whole pie to myself please."

Her lips pucker momentarily but then she can't stop smiling, feeling breathless and more than a little exhilarated. "You cheat."

"How? You had a head-start which means _you_ cheat."

"But your legs are longer than mine."

"Don't worry." He smiles naughtily again, hasn't stopped. "Yours may be small but they're perfectly formed."

She's wants to tease him for his cheesy line but then his eyes flick downwards and all amusement built between them falls away as Kim watches him trail the length of her legs, slowly, and he licks his lips and _god_ , she feels burned, branded suddenly. It feels so good. That impulse, the desire to kiss him, to feel his mouth on hers, has been unravelling all day and now it's thrumming through her fingertips as they tighten against his biceps, pinching the solid muscle and soft skin there. Jack's gaze jumps from the swell of her breasts, clashing with hers heatedly.

"So…" biting her lower lip, Kim fingers the edge of his sleeve, pinching and tugging the material where it rests against his bicep. "Do you -"

The words are stolen as Jack growls, the noise bursting out between the clench of his teeth as he tugs her against him. His lips smash against hers, surprise liquefying into a heady sort of pleasure as his mouth demands and coaxes little moans from the back of her throat, and as their tongues meet all she can think about is the scratch of his stubble, the feel of him pressed against her so hot and hard and masculine, his fingertips frantic against her flesh. His heart races beneath her palm as she slides it up his chest and into his hair, giving her a thrill that he's affected just as much.

In the distance, somewhere beyond the realm of everything else, someone shouts "way to go!" and wolf-whistles loudly, and it feels like forever and no time at all when Jack pulls away, lips wet and swollen, breathless. Kim's hair is a little mussed and she can feel everywhere his hands have been. Their eyes lock heatedly and they both lean back in, lips millimetres apart, the tip of his nose barely brushing hers when the wolf-whistle sounds again, louder and longer now, and they startle backwards, looking around. There is a group of young men giving double thumbs up and one rude hand gesture and then two of them get on the grass to perform some sort of mime and…oh. _Oh_.

Kim thrusts her flushing face into Jack's chest, trying to cover her cheeks with her hair and his shirt and getting nowhere. "Oh god, oh god."

"Uh. Yeah."

She can feel his arm moving and he must have gestured something at the guys, because there is a burst of laughter and then a blissful quiet.

Somehow she manages to meet Jack's gaze and there's a moment of unblinking silence as they each replay what just happened. There is tension and awkwardness because they are in a public place, but then a loud honking noise startles and jolting them back into their surroundings, the outside noise coming at them in a rush. It releases the tension in a snap and they both laugh at the awkwardness of it all but when their smiles slowly fade and their eyes meet again, there's that burning energy again.

"So," she breathes, and tugs at a loose thread at the bottom of her denim shorts, using the distraction to regain her composure. "Pizza take out?"

Jack's brow crinkles momentarily and he nods, more than a little dazed as they start to amble in the direction of the stop of the light rail. That will take them to her hotel. Where they will have pizza. Alone.

A/N: I swear, it got away from me a little. There will be some promised pizza and make-out in the next chapter.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: this is shorter than I planned, but we had power outage, so I was without technology for a bit here. So, our couple gets more physical. Let me know how this is. I am always worried about intimate scenes.

* * *

They avoid full on make-out in public just by sheer force of Jack's will. He holds his hands to himself even though his fingertips are tingly with the urge to touch and his blood is pumping through his body like he has two hearts instead of one. In the hotel, with pizza in their hands, they walk side by side and Jack swears he can see electricity jumping from him to her. Its unbearable and fantastic at the same time.

It's just…he wants to touch her. Now. This is beyond the frustration. This is a compulsive unrelenting need to take her back to bed, study her body like a map and learn what makes her moan and sigh. It's reached the point where he doesn't quite know how he's survived this long without touching her because everything that came before, that led to this point, seems so disjointed and faraway and it's only here and now that matters. It's all he knows right now.

They are at her suite right now and she puts pizza boxes on the little coffee table that is in the front of the common room. Jack does not know what to do right now and just stands there fidgeting and running a hand through his hair.

Kim looks up at him and her smile seems more devious around pink glossy lips. "Do I make you nervous, Jack?"

His gaze darts between her eyes and lips and back again. "Oh, you have no idea, baby."

Her gasp is barely audible but it fires him like nothing else, energizes him anew. Kim licks and rolls her bottom lip between her teeth, her hand suddenly running smooth down his forearm, and Jack watches, enthralled slightly and pulse quick, as she circles his hand with hers (tiny) and squeezes it.

They stand there for a moment staring at their loosely joined hands, so new and strange and yet familiar all at once, and when Jack makes a decision to weave his fingers through hers tightly, Kim beams, her eyes sparkling.

Kim clears her throat and Jack is all kinds of grateful because he just doesn't know what to say right now. He feels a little knocked off his own feet, unbalanced in a way he's never been before. She slowly lifts her head, looks at him with serious eyes and then, "I always liked my pizza cold..."

The next moments are kind of blur because Jack fairly fuses himself to her and dives in for a long, deep kiss with tongue and teeth and Kim is making these soft noises in her throat and somehow, somehow his legs don't buckle and he manages to walk them to the sofa.

He wastes no time getting rid of his over shirt and Kim has already lost her jacket and he maneuvers her on her back. The sofa is not nearly long enough to fit his frame and he braces his knees around her hips and is about to lower himself for another kiss, but Kim puts a hand on his chest and slowly drags it to the hem of his shirt. He stills and let's her do it, his skin prickly in anticipation. She pulls it up as far as she can reach and he takes over and pulls it off. Her eyes slide down over his body, practically touching him with just her looks. It's not a first time he is shirtless in front of her, but this is different. Her hands lift and touch him lightly and its almost too much and he inhales loudly at the zap of awareness her hands bring.

Her hands are tentative but curious and she reaches for his abs, tracing the ridges and says something like ' _wanted for so long_ ' and he is inordinately pleased with his own body and her reactions to it. Her fingers graze his nipples and he can't quite keep the deep raspy moan if he tried. She looks on in fascination and grazes them again watching as the areola pebbles under her touch.

"Kiiim," he begs not sure what he is asking for and she retracts her hands away and looks into his face. "You are killing me right now... in a good way."

Her mouth makes a perfect circle of 'oh' and he falls into the kiss with her because he can. Her hands are trapped between them now and she wriggles them out and traces the lithe muscle on his back than undulates as he moves. Just then his mouth travels to her neck and she barely has time to utter the plea 'other _side. Not enough makeup to cover the hickey_.' Jack smiles into her neck and switches sides and it's her turn to moan. He managed to work the neck opening as far as it would go, but it's not enough. Frustrated, he gives a nip at where he is kissing and her hands dig into his back and the feel of the blunt nails on him is sharply pleasing. He squeezes her sides and starts pulling the top off, but stops to look at her face. "OK?" She nods frantically and lifts her torso up to get help get it off. Her bra is a matching black to her panties that he spied earlier and it's smooth and silky. He kisses down the neck to the edge of the cup and her skin is as smooth as the silk of her bra. It's all flushed pink and Kim unconsciously lifts her chest up into him. He dares, finally and with shaking hands, to move his fingers onto her bra covered breasts.

This somehow feels monumental and he moves slowly and her response is beyond his expectations. She moans are breathy and she pushes her breasts up and he obliges and takes firm hold of them. They are not big, but oh so perfect. He wants more, want to touch them and taste them.

"Oh yes, please..." she whispers and he realizes he spoke aloud.

He drags the cups down and her naked breasts are so much better than his imagination ever was. He stares a little and she stills under him, even her breathing stops. Belatedly he gets that she is self conscious now under his eyes, so he goes back to kissing, now trailing his mouth to her peaks that are dark pink and hard already and it is all too much and not enough. Never enough. She mewls and her hands are in his hair keeping him close. He happily obliges. His hands are almost too big and when he puts them over her breasts, he can cover them up entirely. But when he does that, her hard nipples poke at palms and it is somehow a very erotic feeling. But the best part is kissing her breasts. She is responsive and gives a constant stream of sighs and _yes_ and _oh, Jack_ and it is the best feeling to make her feel good.

She is squirming, but he's been keeping his lower half off of her because of the position they are in. Somehow she figured it out and suddenly she lifts up and pushes him back until he is sitting with an armful of Kim in his lap. The sudden move makes her still hooked bra fall to her waist and her perky little breasts to bounce a little and it is honestly hypnotic. She unhooks the bra and drops it somewhere behind her.

His hands go around her waist and it is ridiculous how small she is (he thinks of all other ways she is small and no, just no, can't deal with it now). He can wrap his hands around and his fingers are almost touching. He traces the edges of her shorts and dips the fingers inside to touch those black panties. He can see her stomach undulating, like a belly dance move and seriously, how can she be so sexy and so innocent at the same time? He does that again and she presses her palm over his and and he freezes, scared that he's gone too far.

Kim exhales slowly and then her hand moves away and her head drops on his shoulder. His hand is trapped inside her shorts and he can't help himself as he stretches his fingers and goes inside her panties and _oh, sweet lord,_ she is almost bare there (he visualizes it and _oh_...). She is also warm and wet and he slides his fingers down and just explores her. She is mewling and squirming and almost dislodges his fingers, which just won't do. So he uses his other hand to wrap around her and hold her firmly right where he wants her.

Her breasts are right at his eye level and he goes back to kissing them just as he finds the entrance and circles it slowly. She keens something incoherent and he does it again, adding a thumb to the apex of her pussy and finding that nub that he's heard and read about. He is now ashamed that he never bothered to try it with other girls so he can be better at it, but then stops: he'd rather share this first with Kim.

She is just pleading now, a litany of _yes, please, don't stop, right there,_ and he is so turned on right now, but he wants to see it on her face, how good he is making her feel. So he grabs a handful of her hair in the back of her head and gently pulls her face up and oh, she is beautiful... Her eyes, normally much lighter brown, are almost black and unfocused, she is flushed pink and is biting her lips and when he swipes over her clit again her face crumbles and she breathes the softest _oh Jaaack_ and he can feel it it now, her orgasm that drenches his fingers.

He kisses her until she calms down, his own near painful arousal forgotten for a moment.

But not for long. He's hard and ready to burst but doesn't want to push her too much. Somehow, amazingly, she is entirely too innocent. Not that he is that experienced, not by much, but he's careful with her... She does not let him think too much, because she is kissing him again and instinctively rocks on top of him and, _oh god,_ he might actually go insane if something doesn't get done about it soon. Kim is either aware of that, and evil, or she's somehow missed the fact that that's his cock she's pressed up against, because she just continues, hips moving like she knows what she's doing, but her mouth preoccupied with kissing the hell out of him, as her hands move over his neck and chest, the touch greedy and curious. She comes back up from where she'd been mouthing at his jaw, bites his lip, tugging on his hair at the base of his skull, and Jack can't take it.

"Okay," he says, panting. "While I don't want to go and polish one off in the bathroom, I'm either gonna need to do that or you're going to have to give me a break."

 _Oh god_ , did he just say this out loud to her? He has no time to feel embarrassed, because he is really, really hard right now and topless satisfied Kim, who basically is humping him, removed all normal filters from his brain.

Kim shifts, and Jack is pretty sure she's not consciously moving her hips like that. Or she's evil, but he's fairly certain that Kim is on the side of angels. She looks conflicted for a moment and then moves her hands to this belt and takes it off.

Jack stares at her stupidly and then blurts out, "OK, not what I had in mind..."

She huffs an amused laugh, "I am not going to have sex with you, but I don't mind helping you out..." she says and blushes the deepest red at that.

 _Holy Christmas Nuts!_

Jack is honestly floored and speechless for a moment. He is also one hundred percent certain if he says anything he's going to mess it up so instead he sits up and kisses her again. Pressed to her chest to chest is amazing. He's getting back into the flow of just kissing her, when she retreats a centimeter, drags her nose against his and says, "let's get your pants off."

Jack does not think he ever moved faster. He might have pulled something actually, but it really doesn't matter right now. Kim has scooted back so she's perched on his knees, and when he starts to shove his jeans down, she relocates to the floor onto her knees and, _oh wow,_ he is might come from the image alone. She pushes at him until he's sprawled half sideways across the sofa and then slaps his hands away. Jack can't find it in himself to do anything but stay quiet and let her do what she wants. Evidently, what she wants is to have his pants around his thighs and her hands are dangerously close to his cock. He can deal with this. He can totally deal with this. He's had a few girls grope him there and one of them went down on him before, so he can deal with it.

Kim finally has his clothes pulled down and his cock springs out hard and practically purple at this point. She stares... and stares... and stares some more. He can't take it anymore, he cannot...

"Urgh, Kim..." he starts and honestly he has no idea what he is about to say, but he is interrupted when she sort of exhales.

"I've never... seen... before... like this... Or done anything to _it..._ before," Kim says a little apologetically, glancing up at him as she tentatively puts her hand on his dick.

 _Sweet lord. Yeeees..._

He can't deal with this. Jack is going to be a begging mess, because Kim is perfect and he cares about her and she's going to _help him out_. If he dies now, Jack couldn't be happier.

She wrapped her hand around him and studies the image like it is the most fascinating thing. She moves her fingers over him, probing the veins and the underside and mumbles something about it being bigger than she thought it'd be. _Holy Christmas Nuts!_ His dick actually twitches at this innocent praise and Jack would have been self-conscious, but his blood is all in this dick right now and there is no higher reasoning functions left in his brain.

She looks up at him, "I... don't know what... and how... Show me?" She is embarrassed and determined and he wants to kiss her, because this is Kim. And she has her hand on his dick... Yeah...

He drops his hand over hers and starts moving it and showing her how to touch him (he is teaching Kim how to give him a hand-job! how? what?). She gets it fairly quickly and his hands drops off and he just holds his breath because he is on verge anyway, has been since they started making out and it won't be long before...

"It's so smooth, but also hard, like velvet over steel. And hot. So hot..." Kim says absently, almost to herself and he can't, he just can't hold off anymore.

"Kim... don't stop... I'm gonna... Ahhh..." his last sound is an embarrassing near shout and he can feel the orgasm gathering at the base of his spine and rush through him towards her. He just closes his eyes and enjoys this moment.

Yeah... pizza is better cold anyway...


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: This chapter is mostly Kim's viewpoint and therefore is more of a reflection. She is the one who has to make a decision in the end of the summer. So the tone is less sensual.

* * *

It's two days after the cold pizza in San Jose. They ended up having a dinner with Kim's dad and Jack's grandfather that evening and it was obvious how the two got along: they both wanted their kids to be together and were most determined to give them privacy at every opportunity. Kim doubts that her dad would have been so blaze about his daughter and the boy she was seeing, but the looming possibility of her being gone for a year seemingly swayed him. Still, they had an interesting conversation about responsible choices. Before she could blush and stammer something about there being no need for to have the birds and bees talk, her dad surprised her and told her that he did not want her to lead someone on and then break their hearts.

This was a sobering thought. Kim, when she said 'let's see where it takes us,' was thinking about her own heart and her own expectations. And she thought that Jack is the same page, but now... now she wonders. What does he want out of this summer relationship? He said many heartwarming things to her. She knows he cares about her deeply and he is enthusiastic about their growing physical connection, but what happens when the summer is over and she decides to go to Otai? If she decides to go to Otai. Would they break-up? Would they be in a long-distance relationship? Would it be possible to even maintain such a relationship? Otai is notorious for its strict rules about outside contact... Would their connection fade if they are apart?

Kim knows that she wants this time with Jack even if she would go to Otai. Even if they decide to break up because of it. Is she being selfish for wanting this summer, this chance with him?

Kim lay that night in her hote bed, thinking in circles about this thing with Jack and was no closer to any concrete answer.

* * *

They are in San Francisco and Kim is supposed to meet her cousin today. Maddie was part of the clan that Kim just saw in San Jose, but she was a freshman in the university and she was working here during summer. She is only two years older than Kim and growing up they two of them were quite friendly. Then, once Maddie entered high school, things have changed. She had a little time for a younger cousin, who was terribly juvenile in Maddie's eyes. When Kim herself became a high schooler, she expected that she and Maddie would become friends again. But by that point, Maddie was fairly ensconced in her clique and was unbearable. Kim's continued karate training, cheerleading and gymnastic team and even dating a footballer was all popular targets of snipping from Maddie, who was entirely above such things. Kim, being one of the popular girl in school, was automatically branded a mean girl who was vapid to boot.

And now Kim has to meet this cousin and hang out with her. Worse, Jack was supposed to join them and it only would add to the awkwardness Kim is expecting from this meeting, if not outright smug judgment from Maddie.

They are meeting at the Neptune Society Columbarium and Kim has to laugh at Jack's idea. After she described her cousin to him, Jack quickly checked the internet and found the best option. According to Jack, if Kim's cousin is so counter popular culture, then they should meet her at the "vertical grave-yard" that is such an off the beaten path attraction that it would meet approval of the very contrarian cousin.

Kim admits that the idea is sheer brilliance. She did not think she'd like it, but it is oddly beautiful, peaceful, strange and morbid at the same time. The design almost defies description. It's like entering and walking into another world, a world of the dead and of memories of those past, forged by their loved ones in remembrance, love and respect. The silence is truly deafening, the air so still that Kim thinks that moving through it would create ripples like the pebble thrown into the still water.

If nothing else, the quiet and reverent atmosphere halts any mundane conversation and Maddie, who brought her boyfriend - Sam - with her, is quiet too and Kim hopes it would still Maddie's acerbic tongue in general. She hasn't changed much. At least not in appearance. She's casually dressed, fresh faced and Sam is equally casual and relaxed.

San Francisco is cooler than Seaford by a bit and Kim is wearing jeans, graphic tee and leather jacket with her favorite sturdy boots. She is not exactly super casual, but it is an easy and comfortable outfit. Jack does not have to try too hard with his clothes. Everything he wears looks great on him. He too put on a leather jacket and Kim is inordinately pleased with this unconscious matching.

When they left the Columbarium, the foursome stays quiet because being at the cemetery, even as unusual as this one, does that to people. It is awhile before the general conversation picks up and by this point they reached the restaurant they plan to eat at. They already ordered their food, when Maddie recovers a little.

"Kim, I heard from my parents that you are going to Japan for a year. How did that come about?" she sounds surprised, as if she didn't know that Kim is a black belt.

"Otai is an martial arts academy. They select student from the applications prepared by their sensei." Kim does not elaborate beyond that.

"Oh, so you have to be the best to go there? Jack, aren't you in the same studio as Kim? You have the same sensei, no?" it's obvious what Maddie is implying.

"Yeah, and Kim is the best. But, honestly, I got my Otai offer almost two years ago. I chose not to attend." Jack is both sweet and to the point.

"Why not, dude?" Sam is incredulous and looking at Jack like he is insane. "Full ride in a best school and in a foreign country..."

"Its true that Otai is exclusive. But you can become the grand master without attending it. And this way, I would not be missing out on other things that important to me." Jack says it to Sam, but Kim feels like his words are directed at her. She turns to look at him and they are momentarily lost in each others' eyes. It's her, the important things that Jack did not want to miss out on. She knows this to be true, like she knows her own name. This knowledge is frankly overwhelming.

"If you say so..." Sam says and it startles the two of them back to reality. "How would you even become a grand master?"

"You train with great sensei, you compete, you win tournaments. You teach others. My grandfather is a grand master."

"So you are following your grandfather's footsteps. I must admit, I am surprised that Kim is with you. I thought she'd be dating quarterbacks, seeing she is a cheerleader herself." Maddie says in a nonchalant way, but it feels deliberate and pointed.

"I don't know why are you surprised. Jack and I have been friends for a long time. And I am not only a cheerleader." Kim is irritated, but she does not want to feed the troll. She can feel Jack tensing up and puts a hand on his knee to calm him down. He covers her hands with his own and squeezes it.

"Actually, her cheerleading and gymnastics help her in karate. All those tumbles, jumps and kicks add to the fighting technique. She's got quick reflexes too. She can wipe the floor with you in a video game." Jack's pride at her achievement is so obvious, its almost embarrassing.

"You game?" Sam's tone is surprised and respectful.

"Not really. But I wanted to prove a point to Jack and beat him fair and square in the Immortal Slayer." Kim laughed at Jack's put upon expression.

"Yeah, and she did. And then that guy from the video game company ruined the whole thing."

"Oh I can see that being good at karate, you'd be good at Immortal Slayer!" Sam's tone is admiring now and Kim catches Maddie's scowl at this.

"Well, as nice as it is to catch up. I have to go now. Sam, shall we?" Maddie gets up to go and a hasty good bye later the two are gone.

Jack and Kim look at each other disbelieving and Kim just shrugs.

"I told you she's weird."

"She's jealous and judgmental. But, she is gone and we can do whatever we want now. What do you want to see?"

"I picked out the attractions in the last two cities. Your turn now."

* * *

They ended up going to the Palace of Fine Arts and Exploratorium. Art exhibits for her and gadget-y things for him. While neither of them would reach Julie's and Milton's levels of dedication to knowledge and learning, in their own ways they were great explorers. Kim is attracted to beautiful, delicate, finer things, be it paintings or flowers or music; while Jack is more of a hands on learner and mechanical and digital gadgets were his thing.

By the time they get back to Kim's hotel, they are exhausted and Kim's wants nothing more than to veg out in front of TV with something dumb and violent on. Jack called his grandfather earlier, who was meeting someone he knew from his competition days. Apparently he is going to have dinner with them and Jack is a free agent for the evening. Lazy evening watching movies seems more and more likely now. All they need is popcorn and some takeout and they are set.

They are watching something with deadly alien creatures that invaded Earth and are trading sarcastic comments back and forth, when Jack smiles and says, "you know, Milton was jealous of the Exploratorium. And Jerry too."

"You told them we met up?"

He blinks in surprise at her question. "Yeaaahhh. Didn't you tell your friends?"

"No. To be honest I thought you'd prefer to keep it a secret, even more since we've been, you know…"

Jack shifts awkwardly in the seat and Kim is trying to dislodge the discomfiture rising in her chest, that same sensation she feels whenever they might have to talk about feelings between them.

"Kim, why would I keep it a secret?"

Kim really doesn't know what to say. That she is afraid their summer romance will fade as it nears the end of the summer. That they might break up if she goes to Otai. That Jack dated around but was never serious with anyone. That she does not know if this is serious with them...

She eyebrows rise pointedly. "Oh, so you'd have no problem telling Milton and Jerry that we've been making out all over the last ten days? On more than one occasion?"

"I wouldn't say all over, and please, Jerry would just holler 'swag, yo' and Milton would blush. They'd understand, even Milton, if they saw your butt in those shorts."

"Jack! Ew. I can't believe you said that."

"Okay, okay. Sorry." He takes a deep leisurely breath and smooths his palms against his thighs a couple of times. "Look, I think the fact that I am crushing on you is probably the worst kept secret at Seaford High. I'm pretty sure even the principal and the janitor know."

Kim smiles almost bashfully, pinching the fabric of his jeans where it's gathered and creased at the bend of his knee. "You have a crush on me, huh?"

"Kim." His head rolls languidly to one side. "Take a minute to process where we're right now."

She frowns, taking a measured look around them. "San Francisco?"

"Yes, but I'm talking more about the fact that I am with you while you are with you father, who is on his business trip."

"O-kay…"

"Do I look like a guy that likes rose gardens? Does this look like the face of a guy who enjoys watching ugly fish float by? I mean, art galleries? Paintings, Kim. And roses. And fish."

"Jack..."

"And museums. Where they tell you facts. I am practically Milton by now."

She grins. "Okay. But you've lost me... So what are you saying?"

"I'm saying you should read between the lines."

"I think we both know 'reading between the lines' doesn't work for us, Jack."

She does not mean for it to come out this way. And obviously he is surprised by it as he stares at her unblinkingly for a few moments.

"Okay. I'm saying…" Jack holds her chin in a pinch and she sees him swallow hard against what he's about to say, breathing out the words in a rush. "Yes. I have a crush on you. I wouldn't have done all that stuff if I didn't. I am kind of crazy about you. In fact, I think this crush is kind of permanent."

His eyes are so earnest and soft that its almost unbearable. She looks briefly away and then back at him and then she smiles and fists his t-shirt in one hand, pulling him in for a kiss. It's gentle and innocent and nothing like the kisses they've shared the last ten days but maybe that's the point.

Kim pulls away, resting her chin on his shoulder and for a moment they both just breathe together quietly. "How terrified are you right now?" she asks eventually.

"On a scale of 1 to 100?" His head tilts to consider. "About a 95."

"Do you…Do you want to hold my hand?" She bites her lower lip and draws her fingertips in a gentle brush across the back of his hand that actually makes him shiver slightly. "It might help."

He shrugs one shoulder, trying to be cool about it, but his lips curl upwards. "Can't hurt to try."

She smiles, threading her fingers through his, slightly hesitant at first, before resting their joined hands on his thigh. The movies goes on and they are not watching, but that's also the point. Kim snuggles closer relishing the warm and tingly feeling in her chest.

"Jack?" He hums in response as their eyes meet, soft and smiling. "I am crazy about you too. And I like where this thing is taking us so far..."


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: I switched between Jack's and Kim's perspectives and that's why the language is different in parts. Also, I will try to update this weekend, but it's a long weekend with family and I don't know how much time I'll have.

* * *

Jack is waiting for Kim in the hotel lobby in Santa Rosa. This is as far as his Grandpa is willing to go. Jack can't blame him: Grandpa is older and even though he is in shape, two weeks of car travel are getting to him. Jack is also eternally grateful that he got this chance with Kim thanks to his grandfather. He is moderately hopeful that the progress they've made would hold until she is back to Seaford and then, who knows, he might even convince her to stay.

That evening in San Francisco, when they sort of declared themselves to each other (he blames Milton, who actually said that to him, as in 'did you declare yourself to Kim?'), was also the evening that her dad decided to have _the talk_ with him. How he figured that he and Kim moved from 'seeing where it goes' to 'boyfriend and girlfriend' Jack would never know. Must be a dad radar or something. The point is, Chuck Crawford could be intimidating. He may not be a black belt, but the man was an athlete in school (football, Jack thinks) and has not let himself go. He also owns a gun. A fact that Chuck felt compelled to share with Jack. He also switched to calling him Brewer and Jack was positive that it was meant as a threat. Which was shocking, really. Jack has known Chuck for the entirety of his friendship with Kim and to be addressed by the last name was unexpected. In fact, Jack said so (unwisely).

"Did you call me Brewer?"

"That's not really the point, is it, Brewer?" Chuck said. "I just want to know you're aware Kim is a very precious girl and she's got family looking out for her."

Jack considered rolling his eyes, because of course he realized Kim is too good for him, but what the hell is he supposed to do about it? It's not like that's stopped Jack from wanting to be with her. And she's decided she wants to be with him, too, and Jack really doesn't think Kim can be stopped from getting what she wants. So it's out of his hands.

"Yes, of course," he said as politely as he could, praying that Kim would be back from the ladies room soon.

Chuck looked at him patiently, apparently not done.

"Ugh, I understand your..." Jack started, but then stopped, because what was he supposed to say now?

Chuck smiled. "Good. And if you break her heart, I'll break your legs," he said cheerfully and Jack nearly swallowed his own tongue at that.

He tries to keep his hands to himself after that.

* * *

The day is overcast and it threatened to rain. They decide to skip the safari/nature trip, because the weather looks so unpredictable. Instead, they go the the Burbank home and garden. Pacific Coast Air Museum is next on the list. They are leaving the gardens, when the sky opens up and the deluge of water starts falling. Kim is prepared and quickly opens an umbrella over both of them. They huddle close, unmoving, listening to the rhythmic sound of the rain against the dome above them. As neither of them seems to want to move, Kim presses her cheek to his chest and tightens her grip around his waist, trying not to think about how close they are, how he smells, how solid he feels beneath her fingertips.

She wants him.

It's not a new feeling but it bubbles up inside her unexpectedly at times, and the kissing and touching, laughing and chatting for days has just amplified everything and now…now her hands itch to run through his hair and grab him – really pull him flush against her so she can feel the hard planes of his chest and his heartbeat... They have not had a chance to be together alone since San Jose and she really wants that again (her embarrassment is almost as strong as her desire for him). She wants him to take off her clothes and do things to her, things that still make her flush when she thinks about them.

But she just doesn't know how get them there - or when. She is kind of hoping he'd take the lead but he hasn't and really, why?

She sighs at the thought - at the frustration she felt back in her hotel bed, that had her flushing and wriggling and thrusting a cold pillow into her face - and pulls back slightly, tilting her head to study him. He's already gazing at her with that look again, so soft and full of something…

Jack presses a kiss to her forehead and sometimes his affection just doesn't seem possible.

"What are you thinking about?" he asks.

"Oh, just the weather. In Seaford the weather is so constant and here is a classic summer rain. Isn't it amazing?"

"Rain is rain, Kim. It is simply inconvenient."

"But it's different. It smells really cool and fresh here." She sniffs the air pointedly, feeling the crispness hit her lungs, invigorating after the morning's strangling humidity. "Can you smell that?"

"I can't smell anything but your hair." She can see his eyes widen a little, as if he didn't mean to say that.

She smiles to herself as she fingers the hem of his t-shirt where it sits low against his jeans. "You know, there's something sexy about kissing in the rain if…" She peeks at him through her eyelashes. "If we got rid of this umbrella."

His eyebrows rise in amusement. "Kim, I'm not making out with you in the pouring rain just because you think it's romantic."

Kim blinks up at him. "Oh, so you don't see the merit of getting soaking wet while you make out?"

"No. Sounds pretty uncomfortable if you ask me."

"Huh." She taps her chin slowly, deliberately. "You don't think the rain would make this dress cling to me and maybe make it wet enough to be make it see-through?"

His gaze darts down to her floral sundress, a little startled. "I…no?"

"And you also don't think that people have to get out of their wet clothes quickly? And what they do once they've removed their clothes to warm up?" She watches his mouth part soundlessly. "But that's OK. If you think it's inconvenient, then OK."

"Hey." His voice cracks around a swallow. "I don't know everything... See-through you say?"

"Pretty much," her pulse races as she runs through what she's about to say and she has to stop herself from bouncing in a rush of nervous energy and adrenaline. "We'd have to go back to my hotel to dry off because honestly, you'd probably see everything."

There's a pause as he swallows hard and fingers the strap of her sundress where it's clinging damply to her collarbone. "You know, we don't actually have to be wet to go back to your hotel. I'm just... putting that out there. You just say the word," he winks at her flirtatiously, his free hand moving down to squeeze the firm curve of her hip, creeping to the swell of her butt, and she can feel the heat of his palm through the thin material of her dress.

Her heart flutters fiercely but she shrugs, trying to keep as casual as possible because she knows now, knows that Jack's just waiting for her to make her move.

"Okay."

"Okay?" His hands tighten against her, just a little. "Is that the word?"

Kim shakes her head in amused frustration, pulling him close by a fistful of his shirt, "It's a good thing you are pretty, Jack." She finishes with a mere whisper against his lips and kisses him deeply.

Miraculously the summer rain is over by the time they finish their kiss and they dash to Kim's hotel anticipation fueling them up.

Once they are in the hotel, the anticipation is almost replaced by awkwardness and Kim is debating on how to proceed. Jack actually takes that particular decision out of her hands by putting his large hand on her shoulder to turn her to face him and cupping her face with it. It's that unbearable sweetness and open affection that nearly kill Kim every time she sees that expression on his face.

Unconsciously, her hands move and Kim bites her lip, watching the slow path of her palm up his torso, exposing his body a little as the hand catches fabric. She smooths her hand under the shirt to gently touch across the hard muscle that jumps at her movements and finally across his nipple. He lurches lightly and their gazes clash and Kim let's her hand drop and walks to the bedroom.

He follows her and sits on the bed, kicking he shoes off. Jack watches eagerly with lidded eyes, his breath on the side of heavy as she shakes her hair over her shoulders and removes her cardigan, throwing it to the side and uncaring where it lands.

She slides to stand beside the bed, reaching behind to draw down the zip of her dress, and even though her hands are a little shaky at first, Kim feels jolt and rush as Jack licks his lips and sits upright to remove his shirt, tossing it mindlessly just as her dress pools at her feet. Kicking it away she reaches to undo her bra but Jack scrambles off the bed, grasping her wrists tight.

"I…" His words falter as he takes in the low-cut pink bra and pink panties that don't exactly match. "I want to do it."

She watches him, standing shirtless and barefoot in just his pants – something so sexy about his toes sinking into the carpet – and waits, expelling a quiet breath across his chest the moment his fingers run feather-light across her shoulder blades. He sweeps down to unclasp her bra and lets it go slack, peppering a line of kisses along the curve of her shoulder as he gently slides the straps down her arms and pulls it away from her body.

"I've always wondered about this, whether your underwear matches," Jack says in a near whisper, almost to himself, as he runs a palm across her collarbone, hovering above her heartbeat for a few racing seconds before he cups her breast.

"Not always," Kim gasps at the warmth of his palm, steadying herself with a hand on his forearm as she arches instinctively into his touch.

He teases the nipple with his thumb, drawing it to one hard peak.

"Jack," she whispers breathlessly and he makes growly noise, lifting her abruptly and placing her on the mattress so carefully she could cry at his gentleness, and _oh, she missed this_.

Kneeling on the bed, Jack traces the length of her legs from ankle to knee, smoothing up to gently kneed the flesh of her thighs, watching the pale skin give and change color under his hands, and Kim's pulse is a fast staccato as his fingertips eventually edge underneath the elastic of her panties either side of her hips. Their gazes meet for one second as he asks a silent question and she lifts her hips in answer, biting her lower lip as he tugs her panties and draws them slowly down her legs.

Kim uses every shred of restraint not to cover herself, to lie there and watch his eyes devour the length of her fully naked body for the first time, his gaze jumping all over like he doesn't know where to look first. At his first touch, she nearly jumps and he looks at her wild-eyed.

"You tell me what you want Kim, okay?" his voice is raspy and low and she shivers at the intensity of it. She is blushing, she can feel it and it makes her embarrassment even more acute. But she wanted it, so she mumbles, not quite looking at him.

"I liked what we did the other time."

Jack smooths a hand softly over her leg and moves swiftly from his position to lay close to her she rises to look at him.

There's something so unnerving about being fully naked that Kim busies herself – she touches him everywhere she can reach, but then slows down to be more methodical. She traces fingertips down the indents of his abdomen the way she's always wanted; the further she treads the more his muscles clench, the faster his chest rises and falls. On impulse she dusts delicate kisses over his nipple, taking the time to trace it once with her tongue, and Jack makes a noise between a gasp and a groan, his hips lifting almost involuntarily as she reaches out to touch the length of his erection, a feathery tentative caress that has him twitching in her palm and eyeing the ceiling with rising gasps.

"Kim, I… _Fuck._ "

The low throaty noise hissing between his teeth makes her touch bolder, her strokes more insistent as he hardens in her grasp. She captures his grunts and groans with her mouth, teasing him with her tongue in a rhythm that matches her hands perfectly, like she knows exactly what she's doing.

Kim jumps a little when Jack catches her wrist and rolls on top of her with a grunt, and there's a messy moment of tangled limbs, lips grazing lips and searching tongues, before her legs part to cradle the weight of his body and he showers her face with kisses - the corner of her mouth, cheek, jaw, temple, down the arch of her neck and across her collarbone.

His breath is warm and makes her shiver.

He watches her as he nuzzles a path across her breasts, and when he circles her nipple with his tongue and sucks it into his mouth with a hum of pleasure, Kim whimpers, spine arching off the bed, her fingers tightening in his hair.

The desire is swooping low in her belly, sending all the blood between her legs; the slow burn and build and writhing need to release, just like she feels sometimes when she's in her room and it's late and she's alone, and her fingers wander to places only she and now Jack have seen.

The _want_ thrumming beneath her skin has her head rolling side to side on the pillow, moaning loud with a voice she doesn't recognize – low pitched and husky - making her fingers pinch the solid muscle of his biceps.

Opening her eyes, she stops grinding mindlessly against his pelvis long enough to notice Jack has stilled, watching her with darkened eyes. Her cheeks warm embarrassingly and she has to force herself not to look away.

"Don't stop. You look so…" He swallows thickly again. "You're..."

Her heart flutters at the look on his face, the dart of his eyes between hers so heavy and intense, and she reaches for his hand, kissing his fingertips before she places them almost timidly over her breast because she's not sure what else to say.

Jack meets her slow smile, ducking to kiss her again, and when he pulls away Kim watches his palm draw a path down her sternum, his eyes darkening when her stomach muscles tense and tremble as his fingers slowly circle her navel and slide down between her thighs.

"Hot," he whispers.

And she feels it – with every graze of his eyes, every kiss to her collarbone. At his touch she whimpers and arches her hips a little and his tongue meets hers and she pushes against it, clutching at the sheets frantically as she grows slick around his fingers. She watches, mesmerized, as he lifts the fingers to lick them and she both blushes and grows wetter at the image.

"Jack," she murmurs. "You don't..."

He does not let her finish as he says moving lower down her body and kissing her breast, her stomach, her belly-button, "I want to.'

She is no longer embarrassed (maybe a little self-conscious), but it disappears at the first touch of his tongue on her. It is both too much and not enough. She is so sensitive right now that she thinks she might explode from just his looks. Her knees fall open and he settles fully between them all the time keeping a constant connection. She is sure now that he has not done anything like this before. He is tentative and gentle and they discover together what she likes. And apparently she likes a lot of what he is doing to her.

She gasps and clutches at the sheets as his tongue sweeps across her hot flesh, teasing her clit, before he suckled it gently. His hand leaves her stomach and he grips her thighs, pulling them further apart as he takes his time exploring her. It is slow and torturous; Jack is methodical and curious. She is right - he is a hands on learner and right now he is driving her insane as he performs some strange and wonderful dance of tongue, teeth, and lips. She can't breathe, the oxygen is gone from her lungs as he teases her with unhurried swipes of his tongue. His fingers moved up her inner thighs and he gently inserted them inside of her; first one, then two. She gasps at the slight but pleasurable sting of being stretched and he looked up, a wondering smile shining toward her in the form of full, glistening lips. "I wondered about this too," he says huskily, trying to get her attention.

"Wha-?" She says dumbly, the arousal rendering her brain useless.

"And not just me..."

"What?" She says, suddenly snapping to attention.

He glances down at the translucent curls at the apex of her thighs, "Natural blonde," he enunciates carefully in a slow drawl.

"Oh, uh—OH!" She is rendered suddenly speechless as he dives between her thighs with renewed vigor, his lips, tongue, teeth, and fingers acting in concert to bring her to a babbling boneless mess within seconds.

She thrashes and shudders, long past the point of coherency as he sucks and nibbles at her until her muscles tighten and she begins to tremble through her orgasm. He kisses her thighs, the scrape of his stubble adding to her pleasure as his cheeks rubbed against the pale sensitive skin. He draws the moment out for as long as he could, the fingers of one hand soothing her goose pimpled flesh as the long, thick digits of the other danced and teased against her center. He watches her unravel with hooded eyes and no small measure of smug satisfaction then scoots up the bed to lie beside her. He kisses her again with slow assurance and she is barely able to return it.

* * *

Jack is not sure what he expected from going down on a girl, but the last thing he thought would happen is how turned on he'd get. He is hard, painfully, from giving Kim an orgasm with his mouth and fingers. He mentally pats himself on the shoulder for doing so well, but he can't quite enjoy it right now, seeing as he is hard and ready to burst.

Of course, he can't really ask Kim to do anything for him, so he tries to breathe evenly and think of something boring. Like math. Yeah, it should do.

He is just about to start the long division in his head, when Kim turns to face him and smiles the most radiant smile and he's ever seen on her. He actually forgets how to breath or think for a second. She looks at him gratefully and then just whispers a quiet 'thank you.'

He's about to say that she is always welcome, but Kim's hand is on his hard on and she stretches up to kiss him. He falls backwards on the bed and Kim climbs up and settles on top of him, where she proceeds to kiss him like there is no tomorrow. _Oh, please, please touch me, he_ begs. She is definitely evil, because she rolls her hips right over his dick and _oh, oh, oh._

Her hands are not idle and she uses them to drive him mad with hungry and teasing touches. She lets go of his mouth and goes lower and lower until she is close to his belt and starts undoing his pants.

Jack forgets how to breath for real right now. He is ready to beg, because he really, really wants her to go down on him now, but it's Kim and... and... He can't ask her...

But apparently he does have to.

The first touch of her tongue almost makes him swallow his own. Jack thinks is he is going to die. But dying before getting to experience this would be so unfair. It's a little obvious that Kim new to this, she doesn't quite cover her teeth and she gets too ambitious once and has to pull back. Jack has to bite down on a 'sorry' like it's his fault his dick is too much for her. Instead, he ends up moaning like the mess he is when she tries again and manages to get him as far she can and moves her hand on the base to meet her lips.

Jack can tell when she starts to get the hang of what she's doing because she starts playing with her tongue. Jack slams his hand against the bed when she does this flickering thing and she hums.

"Kim, fuck," he hisses urgently. "I'm gonna come."

There's a second's pause before Kim apparently decides that's fine so long as she gets to hold his hand, because she laces his fingers with hers and keeps going.

Jack's vaguely aware he babbles through his orgasm, almost positive it was fifty percent cursing, fifty percent telling Kim she's amazing. Kim climbs up to straddle him again and then she drops on his chest with a smug little smirk on her face and Jack absolutely can't stop himself from gushing that she is the the most amazing girlfriend ever.

She smiles and kisses him.

"Oh my god," he manages to breathe against her lips. "You dad can break my legs now and I wouldn't care..."

She looks startled for a moment and then huff's a quiet laugh, "he wouldn't dare. I like you too much."


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: A smaller, quieter chapter. Our couple separates for a week. Kim's perspective. The next chapter is mostly done, so it would be probably the normal update schedule.

* * *

Jack and his grandfather leave to go back to Seaford after Santa Rosa. That night, after... after (Kim can't even vocalize it in her own head), they all had dinner together and the two teens said their official goodbyes with a chaste kiss. They could not do anything else with her dad there. They texted mushy little messages to each other ('i'll miss you' and 'i miss you already'), but Kim slept poorly, partly because of the memories of what they have done on this very bed earlier in the day, and partly because she was missing him very much.

She wakes up to a chirping noise from her phone at 6 in the morning and it's Jack, texting her to come down to the lobby. _Oh, he's here_. Heart hammering hard in her chest, Kim scrambles to throw on Jack's hoodie that she took earlier in the trip and runs to the lobby uncaring that she is essentially in a tank top and pajama pants. He is waiting for her by the elevators and the moment the doors open she takes a running jump into his arms and they are kissing. She hasn't had chance to brush her teeth, but it does not seem to be a problem, because Jack's tongue is already invading her mouth and they clutch at each other desperately. There is some sort of big potted plant or a tree near the elevators and Jack's walks them to stand behind the plant for some sort of privacy. Which is a problem, because now Kim's back is against the wall and Jack is pressing her into in and Kim is only aware of him, his scent, his strong body in front of her, as his kisses literally take her breath away. She can already feel the heat between them rising and makes a monumental effort to push him off slightly. He leans back, but his hips are still fused to hers and she can certainly feel _him_ now.

"Jack... we can't... you have to go..." she whispers just as she runs her hand over his chest.

"I know, I know... Just had to see you and kiss you properly..." his answering whisper is a little breathy and she is proud that she makes him sound like that.

He takes a full step back and they walk to the door, holding hands and making googly eyes at each other.

* * *

It's only when she's actually on the plane, like physically thousands of feet in the air, travelling at God-knows-what speed to a different state, that it fully hits her, everything that happened with Jack. She imagines that she is on a different plane, going to a different country and then it nearly wrecks her, this knowledge that whatever she and Jack are doing would be the last time any of that will ever happen until she is back almost a year later. The stolen glances, kisses, make-outs, quiet knowledge that she loves him, all just. Over.

(And of course there's everyone else, too. Mom, dad, friends and other family - they're all still fresh on her mind, too.)

But there was some desperation to their last kiss, in the hotel lobby, like this coming week-long separation is a preview of what it would be like if she goes to Otai.

Well, she thought she could handle it.

But.

After everything that's happened, she doesn't think her feelings for him can be easily put away. She now thinks it would be unreasonably hard to pull away and plaster on a smile and choke out a goodbye.

* * *

It's cold in Portland.

Her heavier jacket is stuffed at the bottom of her suitcase, so she wraps his hoodie tighter around herself, shivering, while she waits for her bags to roll round. Her dad is surprisingly quiet and only smiles at her when she looks morose at the scenery passing by. He has to go to work for the rest of the day and they make plans to have dinner. For her part, Kim more than anything just wants to sleep.

She leaves everything unpacked to deal with later.

Before going to bed, she spends an inordinate amount of time thinking about home.

Kim sends two messages to Jack - 'missing you already' and ten minutes later 'i hope you're handling this better than i am.'

She replays their moments from the end of the school year party til this morning like a movie montage again and again.

When she wakes up, some 2 hours later, with the muted light is filing through the shabby wooden blinds, it takes her a second to remember where she is.

Her cheek, pressed into her pillow, feels sticky and itchy and raw with dried tears.

* * *

Kim shakes off her gloomy attitude (rather she stuffs it deep down for a time being) and tries to focus on the touristy parts of the travel. She has not been in Portland before and there is no family here, but Kim is determined to make the best of the situation. So she unpacks, grabs warmer jacket and goes to explore around their hotel. There is plenty to see, though she decides against science and nature attractions. She chooses the art museum and is glad for it. There are exhibits on the Native American art and she is taken with the feeling of this being a uniquely American thing. She actually buys the illustration book in the museum gift shop trying not to examine too closely why she is buying such keepsakes.

She is debating whether calling him now would be too soon or whether she should wait for him to call her, and how is it that she is stuck in this situation? Shouldn't their dating status makes things less awkward? Instead, she posts a picture from the museum vestibule and puts it on Twitter. She is no the most consistent of users, but she has sort of keeps the constant stream of updates of her trip.

She is at the small coffeehouse when her phone chirps and she sees that Jack has responded.

 _'Nice. And no ugly fish in sight! Can't wait for you to come back! There is plenty of pizza here...'_

She's floored. Like, literally, she is a puddle of goo on the floor. She is squealing on the inside, because Jack is implying on public forum that he misses her and hints at that shared memories from the beginning of the trip. Oh, she can deal with one week of separation.

Her dad brings a co-worker to dinner, who brings her teen aged son with her. Apparently, dad has to stay in Portland an extra day and dad thinks Kim would be too bored here by herself. Luke is like a brunet version of Milton - he is skinny, tallish (enough to be taller than Kim, but not by much), and talks about their planned museum trip with excitement rivaling her red-headed friend. Kim shoots her dad a glare, but much too polite to decline so they agree to meet tomorrow at the hotel to explore the science museum of Portland.

When she is back at the hotel, she calls Jack and they chat about their respective days. Jack and his grandfather have been driving non-stop to make it back to Seaford and Jack is obviously tired. They end their talk with soft 'i miss you' and Kim drifts off to sleep with images of Jack's face (and his body) in her mind's eye.

Oregon Museum of Science and Industry is actually better than Kim expected. It has the planetarium and Kim would admit that the night sky with stars is always a gorgeous view even if Luke is droning about constellations and distant planets. There are also hands-on, interactive exhibits that she thinks even Jerry would have liked. She tweets the picture of one of the exhibits, where circles made of various metals were put on the floor for people to step on and create sounds of various resonances. She feels like a kid jumping from circle to circle, but this is fun and she shrugs it off.

It's evening now and Kim had a quiet dinner with her dad at their rooms, because dad was busy with some reports and Kim was checking her phone for messages from Jack. He finally calls her and she answers on the first ring.

"Hey there! How are you? Are you almost in Seaford?"

"Yeah. I think we'll be there tomorrow for sure. How are you? Very much bored?" his tone is light, but the last part comes out weird. Like he stressed it out for some reason.

"I am fine. Had another educational day at the museum."

"I saw. Who is that guy you were with? I thought you don't have family in Portland." His tone is light, but the question is very pointed. Is he? Oh, wow... apparently Jack's jealous... Kim smiles to herself and relishes this fact.

"Luke is not my family. He is a son of my Dad's co-worker. Apparently Dad felt like I needed company here. But now he is done here in Portland and we are flying out to Seattle tomorrow." There, it should clear everything for Jack.

"Oh... So, four more days..."

"Yeah, four more days..."

She literally cannot wait this long.

* * *

Seattle is even colder than Portland and she misses Seaford with its nice, predictable and mild weather. She is not sure she likes all the rain, fog, mist and general humidity in the air. He hair is horrible: frizzy and hard to control. At least the family they are seeing her is nice. Her cousins are much younger than her and she does not have to do much sight-seeing, rather she is baby-sitting her younger relatives. It's nice. Kim got enough of the travelling, touristy things to last her a while and she enjoys being in a comfy home rather than impersonal hotels.

Jack is already in Seaford and they talk a lot. There is a lot if mindless chatter and general gossip about their friends, but it's all so familiar, like they've done countless times before and she is grateful that they are still friends, even if they are so much more now.

The last day before their flight is a slog. The night before her and Jack had come close to having a phone sex, if you can call it that. It started with the general 'I miss yous' and progressed to Jack's describing in some very heated details all the things he misses about kissing her, hugging her and being with her. She could barely sleep that night, tossing and turning, recalling all their firsts so far.

It is literally painful to watch the minutes pass by and Kim has been packed since that morning. Her Dad promised to wrap everything today and leave the office early, so that they can go home that evening. She did not think, could not imagine, that she would miss home (really, Jack) this much. Her aunty, who is a bit younger than her parents sits her down and asks probing questions until Kim spills most of details of her relationship with Jack (minus more intimate details). It feels so good to finally let it out and share with someone. Her aunt is thoughtful by the end of the story and only asks Kim if she know what she will do in the end of the summer. She is still not hundred percent sure, but she thinks she is definitely leaning one way.

* * *

Their plane lands at seven o'clock in the afternoon and Jack assured her that he would be waiting for her as soon as she got off. And as planned, she spots him ways away wearing a beaming smile. He didn't even try to hide his excitement behind his masculinity. She can't stop her hurrying steps even with her Dad present.

His bashful smile grows wide when he sees her walking towards him with a little hop in her step. Soon they are an arm's length apart and without skipping a beat, Jack steps up and wraps Kim in a tight embrace. He huffs out a laugh of excitement as his arms make their way around her entire body.

Kim, too overcome with emotion and excitement as well, giggles as she hugs him tightly, almost as if she is trying to meld their bodies together.

Still wrapped around her, Jack is the first to actually speak. "I missed you so much," he breathed into her hair. She agrees. It's funny, they'd spent entire summers apart before this one, but now after everything that's happened between them, she can't imagine being away from him for any amount of time.

Pressing her face against his chest she mumbles, "I missed you too." She rubs her hands along his back, just so grateful that he is actually there.

After another long moment of their embrace, they pull apart so they can look at one another. They entwine their hands and all Kim can think that it is very cliché fact that they are staring longingly at each other in an airport. "I'm going to kiss you now," he whispers as he smiles.

"What about my Dad and broken legs?" Kim smiles at him.

He laughs and leans in, cupping her face with both hands.

"I'll take that chance."

They are both smiling when their lips met. It is a sweet, lingering kiss. When Jack pulls away, staying only inches from her face, they share another smile. She thinks she can see the moment his eyes linger a little on her lips and he leans forward and kisses her once more. It is hungrier and frantic.

After a few moments, Kim speaks against his mouth between kisses, "Jack…Jack!"

"Hm?" He pulls away, his hands still holding her face.

"Airport. We're in an airport. Where my Dad can see us," she laughs.

He rests his forehead against hers, "Right. Let's go and get your luggage." He kisses her nose and finally releases her face.


	11. Chapter 11

Jack is pacing in the arrivals of the Seaford airport checking the time and being a worry-wart. The week without Kim was kind of unbearable. He is no sure how exactly, but Kim managed to get so deep under his skin that he feels itchy and uncomfortable if he does not see or talk to her for more than four hours. It's pathetic, he knows. But in his defense, Kim is a black hole in space and time and he is fallen deep. He knew it would happen if they started anything and now that they did, he dreads the possibility of Otai. He does not know how he would survive the separation, when just one week was painful.

The actual good bye they had in the hotel lobby was hard (no, he does not mean just in the physical sense, although that too). He was greedy and wanted more and the long drive home, where there were stretches of empty road with his Grandpa napping, did not help his mood. He recalled all their times together during this trip and wondered if he could actually survive a whole year without her. He was right, now that Kim is his girlfriend, her leaving for Otai might actually break him.

They chatted whenever they could and Jack missed her so much that when she posted something about one museum or another, he could not help himself and slipped in a reference to their time together, knowing that she'd understand (and probably blush, and now he was hot and bothered because he knows how far that blush goes).

He was also jealous in general, because Kim is beautiful and he does not trust anyone, but in particular when she posted something and there was some beanpole next to her. He was not exactly worried that she'd replace him (well, he is, but more because he does not know what she sees in him), but he is acutely possessive of all of Kim's attention. He wants to be the one to spend the time with her.

She was in Seattle and there less than 24 hours from seeing each other again and Jack was ready to camp out in the airport since morning.

He misses being one on one with her. He suspects that once she is here in Seaford, the routine would stand in their way. Jack has a summer job at the dojo, since Rudy decided to run a summer camp. It is a great opportunity to make money while doing something he already knows. It also would go towards getting his sensei rank. That meant that he would be busy during the days and both he and she lived with parents, so alone time would be hard to come by. And fine, maybe he is thinking as a horny teen, but (a) he is a horny teen and (b) he also means just time alone, uninterrupted, to talk.

Finally, their flight had arrived and Jack is the first in the arrival gate and then he sees her. She looks... great. Beautiful. Radiant. Fine, he would admit that he is totally whipped and its not strictly Milton's fault for all this poetic talk. His dad may laugh at him for the way teenagers talk nowadays, but Jack has read a lot and, more importantly, he's seen some of the movies Kim liked (it's just research on his part) and right now Kim is radiant. Her face is somber when she first comes out, but then she sees him and its like the sun is coming out: her eyes sparkle, her smile is wide and she is beaming at him. So, yes, she is radiant. And it's because of him. He is pretty sure he is beaming too.

The kiss hello is both what he wanted (sweet and tender and with a promise of more), but also is what he dreads. He missed her so much, he greedily wants a proper reunion. But it's late and her dad is here and Chuck's look is half glare, half resignation. More importantly, she is going home and he has to work tomorrow, so he's not sure when and where they'll see each other. He only says the part about his work, but Kim looks disappointed and he knows she got it.

They don't resolve anything, but Jack manages another long kiss before Chuck takes Kim home.

He is almost asleep (after a cold shower to help him), when he gets her message.

 _I'll see you tomorrow at the mall._

She comes in next day mid-morning looking fresh and pretty, wearing a short fluttery skirt and a striped top and he wonders about her underwear (does it match, what color it is). She brings him Starbucks coffee and he remembers that day in San Jose. They are not alone at the dojo and they step out to sit on that fateful bench. He can't help himself and kisses her now like he wanted to do that evening. His one hand is holding his coffee and another is pulling her close fingers sliding lower to her butt.

She smacks his arm, but she's smiling as she does it. Kim seems to have gotten shy all of a sudden, her gaze darting around the courtyard like she can't quite look him in the eye. For his part, he can't stop staring at her smart, tempting mouth.

This was a really bad idea, he thinks. He's going to snap any second and reach across the space between them to kiss her senseless if he doesn't find some way to get this thing back into PG territory in a hurry. Kim looks up at him, and her soft, tentative smile is enough to get him in gear.

"So have you-"

"Did you—"

They blink in unison, like they're both hopelessly confused, and then share a nervous laugh. Okay, so neither of them has quite adjusted to the shift in their relationship – at least, they're together in that.

"Sorry," Kim says after a moment. "Go ahead."

This girl has completely knocked him off his game.

"I was gonna ask you if you heard about the 4th of July that Bobby is throwing. It'd be nice to see the gang again," Jack offers. It's not what he wanted to ask. He wanted to know if she decided whether she'd go to Otai. But he stops himself. It's not something to be asked out in the open.

She nods thoughtfully.

"It's so strange to wake up in the morning and not rush to school, where I am certain I will see you all," she whispers, leaning in so he can hear her better. "I keep thinking that I have karate practice every day at the dojo, where I'd see you."

He grins, bobbing his head knowingly.

"I knew you'd miss me the most," he teases in a low, deep voice.

She flushes, and he knows now that when she does, it goes all the way down to the tops of her breasts – which only makes the look work for her even more. She raises her eyes after a moment, though, meeting his gaze almost challengingly.

"You really went out on a limb with that guess."

He shrugs.

"Yeah, I guess it's not really fair. I mean, you did tell me that I'm your favorite." He taps his foot against the toe of her shoe beneath the bench. "And that was before I ever made you come."

She gasps, looking around to see if anyone's overheard. "Jack!"

"Kim!" he parrots back.

She has a decidedly scandalized look, with her wide eyes and the perfect, round "O" shape of her mouth, but there's something almost pleased about her expression too. She cocks her head, like she's thinking very carefully, and he starts to feel a little warm.

He feels the tip of her shoe nudge against his leg just below the hem of his pants – it's the most she can get away with here without causing a scene so he sinks down a little on the bench to let her get a little further because some touching is better than no touching at all.

"So this is why you've been ignoring my texts..."

They look up together to find Grace smiling down at them. He hurriedly straightens himself, and Kim follows suit, sitting so ramrod straight that her entire body radiates stiffness.

"Jack!" Grace is saying now. "It's so good to see you!"

They haven't seen one another since the party at the dojo so he stands to let her hug him. Kim fiddles with her cup, tapping it against it like she can't quite keep her hands still.

"So you came back from the trip and ran to see this one?" Grace asks as she slides onto the bench beside Kim.

"She is here to see her boyfriend," he says, as casually as he can manage.

Grace's eyes bug out and she turns to look at Kim with this expression of 'I'll kill for keeping a secret, but first tell me everything.'

"When did that happen? How? I need details!"

It's at this point Jack realizes the monumental mistake he's made. All he wanted is to clarify things, but now Grace won't leave Kim alone until she gets her gossip and he might as well say good bye to his girlfriend for a day. He catches Kim looking at him and mouths _sorry_ to her. She sighs and gets up, Grace following her, and all Jack gets for his trouble is a quick kiss on the cheek.

* * *

Jack is right. Of course he is.

When his relationship with Kim started, he knew, hew knew, that once they started with the physical part, they wouldn't be able to spend any time alone together without craving it, and, as expected, he's been 100 percent right. It's been physically impossible to keep their hands and lips off each other – every time he looks at her, he's mentally calculating how long it will take to get her out of her clothes.

The only real problem has been finding time alone.

He has to work and can't really take too many coffee breaks. Their parents are almost constantly at home in the evenings and if that isn't enough, her Tennessee relatives came to visit because she might be leaving in the end of the summer. They get hurried little (completely insufficient in his opinion) make-outs here and there and on a two occasions he drove her home after their dates and they made use of the reclining passenger seat, as well as the backseat of his car (he is forever grateful that Kim is a gymnast, lets put it this way).

But all of it is not enough and he has taken so many cold showers and worked out extra to burn off his frustration. They need to find some time alone and soon.

Finally, the 4th of July party at Bobby's is here and Jack picks Kim up. She managed to ditch her cousins explaining that Bobby is weird with strangers and as soon as she is in the car they practically throw themselves at each other for a seriously messy kiss. They have to leave for the party and Jack let's go of her lips, but she lingers on his neck giving him a little bite that nearly makes him wanna stop the car in some secluded area.

They get to Bobby's mansion and are let inside, where the party is just beginning. Kim brought the Crawford signature peach cobbler and Bobby tells her to take it to the kitchen. Jack offer to help and soon they are in the cavernous and sterile kitchen of the mansion.

Alone.

As soon as the doors slide shut the air narrows, dwarfing the already limited space around them, Jack's suddenly very aware of his hands and his pulse and the sense memory of Kim's tongue against his neck, the soft bite of her teeth there.

Their eyes meet and something breaks.

They reach for each other at once, hands to hips, mouth to mouth, and Jack thrusts Kim against the shiny polished door of the refrigerator, groaning in relief as their tongues finally meet in a wet messy caress. With each desperate inhale she makes these breathless throaty whimpers that has him grinding against her pelvis, eager and without finesse. She clutches at his shirt, his hair, shoulders, neck, anywhere her hands can reach, drawing her thigh up around his hip, her heel pressing into the back of his leg to get as close as possible. Jack palms her thigh from knee to hip, growling in frustration at the lack of access to her skin. He curses under his breath and fumbles awkwardly with the button and zip of her jeans before he eases a flattened palm inside, barely grazing the lace edge of her panties.

Kim gasps and arches into his touch, her voice whispering a strangled, "Jack?"

He licks the line of her pulse on her neck, mouthing "What?" against her damp flesh before nuzzling the soft skin with his nose and a kiss, repeating the pattern all the way down to her collarbone.

She smells like roses in the rain (he really needs to find out what her perfume is).

"I know it's not the time to say but…uh…" The words hitch on a breath as his fingers finally slip underneath the elastic of her panties until he can feel her heat and she writhes mindlessly, her hands clenching against his biceps with every movement of his fingers. " _Oh god,_ what are you doing? We'll be caught!"

Jack grumbles throatily as he pushes away, reluctantly pulling his hand out of her panties and pressing it flat behind her head, his palm leaving sweaty steamy prints against the door as he imprisons her in his warmth. His whole body sags and he rests his forehead against hers for a moment while they both catch their breath. Kim's foot falls slowly back to meet the floor but she hooks her fingers into his belt loops to keep him close.

Jack swallows thickly, eyes flitting from hers to her lips and back again. "I am literally burning for you, Kim. I thought you were on the same page..."

"Well, yes." She makes a show of rolling her hips in a way that leaves little doubt to how their pelvises are pressed together, and he huffs out a breath as she smiles. "But I don't want to be caught with my pants down by our friends."

"Let's ditch the party and go rent a hotel or something." He grins crookedly, pressing a soft kiss to the corner of her mouth. "We'll be finally alone."

"But…" She moans as he kisses a trail along her jawline, and tightens her grip on his belt. "Our friends will know and they'll talk and then my dad will find out and then you legs would be broken."

"Kim, I could still use my hands, fingers and mouth. You should know how good I am with those."

"Jack!"

"What? Was that not what happened? Did I imagine it?"

"No -"

"Good. Now shut up." He grips her face tightly, growling with relief and frustration as their lips meet desperately again.

They make out with the kind of manic-ness Jack funds surprising – hands almost feverish, lips bitten and broken moans – and it consumes them both until a stuttered cough startles the air around them. Confused and a little disorientated at first, they jerk apart to the amused expression of an waiter hired to serve at the party standing just inside the kitchen doors. Jack laughs, deftly tugging Kim in front of him so her back is pressed against his chest because seriously, he doesn't want this guy to see his erection poking through his pants. Kim flushes the reddest he's ever seen, hiding her shock behind her fingertips and staring at the floor and Jack can tell she's trying real hard not to run away right now.

None of them make a move to speak and eventually, Jack shrugs. "What can I say? She just can't keep her hands off me."

"Jack!" she yelps and he chuckles, imagining her eyes bugging wide.

Shaking his head with a smile, the man wanders into the kitchen just as Jack walks Kim out of it like some kind of rag doll, holding her hips tightly.

As the doors begin to slide shut the guy winks at Jack, "She is a hottie. You did good, man!"

"What? Hottie…?" Kim spins around, brow pinched in confusion before she shrieks, while Jack laughs loudly. The deep rumbling bounces off the high ceiling and the rows of doors along the hallway until it sounds like he's laughing from all directions.

"Jack!" She whacks his shoulder a few times before gasping at the sight of her jeans still unzipped and showing the top of her panties, and she desperately gropes for the button, even though no one is around. He steps closer again, still grinning as he slides his palms along her bright pink cheeks when she finally looks up from her completed task.

"It's not funny. He knew we were -"

"Who cares, Kim? He's right. You are a hottie and I am a lucky guy." He chuckles again, lifting his eyebrows with a suggestive wiggle, palming her hips tightly and slowly backing her into the wall.

They seriously need to find some alone time.

Kim stops his hands and says in her most serious tone, "Jack! The party."

He whines a little, but stops when she whispers, "My cousins leave tomorrow. How are your parkour skills?"


	12. Chapter 12

Kim is frustrated.

No. She is frustrated and mad, but also pensive and a little down.

First, she and Jack has had very little alone time in the past week since she came back from that family business trip. There are stolen moments and two dates, where they managed to let out some of the steam, but is feels somehow dirty and such a difference from the unhurried time spent in the hotels, where they had time to explore each other. So, apparently, she is very sensual and likes to take her time.

But beyond the obvious physical frustration, she also misses the times they went exploring new cities together, with no one getting in their way. She feels enormously selfish, but she wants Jack all to herself. To talk and to touch.

Second, her cousins from Tennessee are here and they are getting on her nerves. More accurately, its her cousin Sarah, who is bugging her. Sarah and Kim are practically the same age and, until Kim's family moved to Seaford, the two of them were classmates and somewhat friendly. Sarah is the opposite of Maddie. In fact Sarah is exactly what Maddie thought Kim was - mean girl, who was ostensible vapid. Only Sarah is not vapid. She is image conscious, for sure. And cultivates every aspect of her life to meet that certain image. But she is smart about it. There is plenty of admirable things she does: she volunteers and tutors. But all of it is a calculated effort and Kim can't quite give Sarah her due. She is also caustic and knows how to use words against people.

Sarah has been on Kim's case about the Otai offer ever since she came. At first it was all complimentary and congratulatory, but it did not last. Soon enough, Sarah started to question whether karate and the Otai scholarship are all that exceptional. And what exactly one does with the karate in 'real life'? Would Kim continue to be a sort of martial artist athlete? Is it a career path? How much can she make doing this? Would she end up being a karate teacher (sensei, Kim says, seething)? Teaching little kids in some strip mall in a suburb? Not that there is anything wrong with being a teacher. It is an honorable profession, shaping the new generation. And if Kim were to become a 'proper' teacher, it would be a great option and a good choice, especially when she has a family of her own. Does Kim plan to marry at some point? How many men would want a girl, who can beat them up with her left hand?

On and on, it went.

Sarah never tires of this topic.

And as much as Kim hates her cousin, part of her does wonder what she would do after the Otai, if she were to go there. It makes her think about her life in general and what she plans for a career. This is why she is pensive. She was always athletic and she can see herself doing that as a vocation. She can become an instructor of course. She can coach maybe. Either cheerleaders of gymnasts. She can choose the fitness/life style path. She can even go into law enforcement with her physical fitness level. But Kim quietly hopes for a career in sports journalism. It would combine the things she already likes: athletics and being on camera and reporting. All of these Kim has been mulling over for at least a year now. She even applied to the internship with the local TV station to get some experience in addition to the school channel work she's done. She can start the first week of July and with internship being six weeks long, she can complete before she has to answer Otai.

But Kim she does not want to talk about it to her cousin. Kim owes Sarah nothing.

So Kim tries to ignore Sarah, which is hard because they share a bedroom right now.

When Sarah is not questioning Kim's bright future as the karate kid, her cousin wants to know everything about Kim's personal life. Does she finally have a boyfriend? Oh, and how long has this been going on? She seems to recall that none of Kim's previous beaus lasted too long. Obviously, Kim spends too much time in the dojo with a rag-tag of friends (including an actual nerd). Sarah is willing to give a pass to Jack (Kim is ready to slap her cousin at this point), because for a skater he looks alright (Kim is sure that Sarah is actually blushing when Jack is mentioned). When Kim tells her that Jack is her current boyfriend (take that, Sarah), her cousin is actually silent for almost a minute (an achievement Kim is proud of), but then smiles sweetly and practically kills Kim with the few pointed words.

"Well, it can't be that serious. You are going away for a year. It is just a summer fling for both of you. Enjoy while it lasts. You don't expect him to wait for you, do you?"

Yeah, Kim is a little down after that.

She also feels very little compunctions when she tells her cousins that Bobby is an eccentric celebrity and would not like any strangers at his party.

* * *

Their little interludes in the car and then the mansion kitchen leave Kim unsettled. She wants that alone time with Jack like never before. She wants to kiss him without fear of being caught and interrupted.

She also wants to just talk to him.

Maybe not about her plans for life after high school, but to get the sense of what his plans are. She thinks they are very serious about their thing. At least she is and Jack has all but told her he loves her. But she does not know if he plans to go to college or stay the sensei route. Should she stay in Seaford, would they last through high school? And if they do, would he want to go to college together? Is she being crazy thinking this far in advance? How many people stay with their high school sweethearts?

Oh, is she turning into one of those girls, who plan their lives around a boy? She is being silly...

Only, she is not a random girl and Jack is not a random boy. They have been friends for a while and almost the entire time they have been friends, they have flirted with something more. Now that they finally are together, she does not want it to end or fade. She wants to be the couple that are high school sweethearts that stay together.

But, right now, Kim wants him. Simply wants him. His kisses in the kitchen, his hands on her, were electric and she is only a teenager. She wants some alone time. When they are together like this, there are no worries or doubts. Everything is clear and their connection is undeniable.

She is chatting with Milton about all the science museum she's been on her trip, when she hears shouts and before she catches on, Jerry is barreling into her with his hands full of cupcakes and she is taken down to the ground. When she gets up, her top is ruined: there are red, white and blue smears all over and she is so mad that she punches Jerry straight into solar plex.

"Ow, ow, ow. Jack get the scorpion off of me."

"That's it!" Kim shrieks and tries to punch him some more, but Jack grabs her from behind, hugging her and effectively pinning her hands and carries her away from Jerry.

"It's not my fault. I swear. Jack pushed me."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Kim grouses, shaking Jack's hold off. "My top is ruined. I need to wash it off right now."

She peels the top up and peeks inside to see that the icing seeped through and she has sticky smears on her belly. "And clean myself off," she adds.

"Oh, just use any guest bedrooms for that. They should be fully stocked. I can find you a T-shirt, if you like." Bobby says already signalling to someone.

"That's fine. I brought my bathing suit. I can just wear the top, while my shirt dries." Kim's glad she thought ahead.

She goes into the mansion, feeling itchy and gross.

* * *

Jack cannot believe his luck. Kim is alone in the giant mansion, when everyone is outside and she is showering. He knows it would be too conspicuous if he leaves right away, but...

What the hell, he thinks.

The door to the bedroom is open and he follows the sound of running water to the bathroom. Its not locked.

He opens it slowly and is greeted with a sound of water splashing in the shower. It's already feels warm here – apparently, Kim likes her showers just shy of boiling. The shower curtain is a flimsy blue sheet, so while he can't actually see her, the shadow of her body through it is enough to get him going.

"Jack?"

He laughs as he closes the door behind him.

"Were you expecting someone else?" he teases.

"No," she says, and he can hear the smile in her voice. "But I did leave the door open."

He sits down on the closed toilet lid, and she pokes her head out from behind the curtain, clutching the plastic to her chest. Her face and chest are pink from the heat, and he'd like nothing more than to lick every droplet of water from her body.

"Somehow I never account for Jerry-related insanity."

He shrugs.

"No big deal." He glances at his reflection in the mirror over the vanity.

She cocks her head, looking dubious, and ducks back behind the curtain.

"Oh!" she says suddenly. "I got good news today. There will be no more family visits this summer. Isn't that awesome?"

He makes a humming noise of agreement, not sure what else to do. She's trying to have a normal conversation with him while she's on the other side of a thin sheet of plastic, all naked and wet – speech is a little beyond his capabilities at the moment. He sees her reach beside the shower faucet for a blue mesh sponge and then he sees the shadow of her hand moving it over her midsection and he knows that she's running it up her torso, over all her creamy, vanilla skin.

She's going to be the death of him.

That fact is more and more certain with every passing day.

He watches through the curtain as she steps under the shower's spray again, tilting her head back so the water falls over her but not her hair, and he almost wishes that he did not come up here because this is torture. The water turns off then, and her head reappears from behind the curtain.

"Could you hand me the towel?" she asks sweetly, gesturing toward the plush white cotton thrown across the vanity.

It would be fun to make her get out of the shower and get it herself, but that's not the game that she seems to want to play. So he stands and passes her the towel with a polite smile. It's large, so when she steps out of the tub, she's covered from her chest to past her knees. Still, there's no getting around the fact that she's naked under it, and when she looks up at him from beneath lowered lashes, it certainly doesn't seem all that innocent.

"Why exactly did you leave the door open?" he asks, amused.

She lifts her shoulders casually, like none of this is a big deal.

"I wanted to see what would happen," she purrs.

He pushes away from the vanity, and she takes a step toward him, and he's kissing her like he's wanted to since they parted ways in the kitchen. She wraps her arms around his neck and he easily lifts her off her feet so they're crushed together in the humid bathroom. Her towel comes loose between them and drops to the floor like an afterthought, so when he grabs at her butt to help her wrap her legs around his waist, he gets a handful of bare skin. He kisses his way down her throat, shifting her higher in his arms so he can reach her breasts.

"Oh, God," he moans against her skin. "Why do you smell like a Hershey Bar?"

"It's the body wash here," she says breathlessly. "Cocoa butter."

"You only have yourself to blame if I take a bite."

To prove his point, he nips at her shoulder and she breathes quietly ending in a long _oh_ , her head lolling to the side to give him better access. He spins around, so he can sit her on the edge of the vanity, which doesn't really put them at the right height but he'll crouch down if he has to – the incentive is too strong not to make this work.

"I can't wait till your cousins' gone," he whispers against her lips.

She giggles, her hands slipping beneath his shirt to knead the muscles in his back. "Is there time?"

"That sounds like a challenge," he growls.

But there really isn't much time, so he doesn't bother trying to take off his clothes. He lets her undo his fly while he keeps on kissing her and palming her breasts. Her skin is still damp so he bends to lick some of the water away - she smells like chocolate and he's starving so he can't be blamed for fusing his lips to her body. He dips his fingers between her thighs, and she's already so wet that he finds himself thrusting into her hand with embarrassing urgency when she takes him out of his pants.

"Been too long..." he groans.

"It's not the same by myself," she tells him distractedly as she pumps her hand over him a few times - which feels so good that he has to press his face to the curve of her neck and just enjoy it for a second, until what she said hits him and he is even more turned on now.

"Oh, _fuck,_ Kim..." he pants as he imagines Kim in her bed, thinking of him and getting hot and bothered and _taking care of it_. For all the cold showers he has to take...

She tries to move and position herself so that he touches her where she wants, but she's too short and can't quite maneuver. He moves her hand away from his erection and kneels down. She gasps but then taps her toes impatiently against his shoulders and he knows that his shirt is going to be a rumpled mess by the time they actually make it back to the party, but he's distracted by the velvety whiteness of her spread thighs and he runs his tongue along the soft, smooth skin. She smells amazing too, and he has to have a taste so he licks at her until she's squirming against the sink.

"Oh, oh, oh," she moans, tugging at his hair to pull him in. "We have to be quick…"

He'd like to argue, but she's probably right so he dives in and manages to work his fingers in. He is careful, because she is so tight, but she makes the sexy, little gasping sound that she always does when his fingers or tongue are inside and he waits for a second, trying to get his breathing back under control.

"Don't stop," she commands, her hands grabbing at his hips to try to get him to move. "Just…"

"Make you come?" he says with a grin.

Her eyes slip shut and her head falls back against the mirror. "Oh, God. Yes."

He winds his free arm around her waist and braces his knees on the floor (so unforgiving, but he does not care) to give himself some leverage. He goes for more speed than finesse. She is holding onto the vanity edge with one hand and the fingers on her other hand dig into his shoulder almost painfully and then she tightens around him, knocking a tube of toothpaste and bottle of hand soap off the vanity as she trembles through an orgasm that catches them both little off-guard.

He wants to draw it out a bit, but he figures they've only got 5 minutes before people start wondering what's taking them so long and Kim still has to get dressed, so he doesn't have the luxury. He gets up and her knees are around his hips and it is to tempting when his cock is close to her pussy, but she squeezes her knees around his hips once and then pushes him back a step and drops to the floor, her face in front of his hard-on.

 _Oh hell_... He is going to come from just the image. The moment she takes him in and wraps her hands around his hips to urge him on, he knows that it would be over soon. She takes him as far as she can go and he fights the instincts to thrust in or to put his hands on her head. In fact, he grabs onto the vanity and clenches his teeth to stop the moaning. But he is not quite successful and makes a choking sound of half-curse, half-plea. She heard it because she looks up at him and the image finally does him in...

He makes a mental note to not go two days without seeing her again.


	13. Chapter 13

Growing up, Jack generally was happy, go lucky kid. He did not get intense or competitive and had plenty of friends. He was outgoing and people liked to hang out with him. Eventually he grew to like to be number one in some things, like karate, but even then he had sportsmanlike attitudes. He was not an envious type.

In fact, Jack had never thought of himself as the jealous type. He found the mere idea of jealousy petty. What is the point of getting bent out of shape over something so trivial?

Things had changed considerably in that department. He met Kim and even though they were not dating before, he got jealous. Quite a bit. It was a known fact and Kim was cognizant of it.

But, now, now he is dating her. And he feels that weird possessiveness all the time. He knows Kim would never do anything to hurt him, but the thought of her being taken away by somebody else is enough to tie his stomach in knots.

In public, every time he catches somebody eyeing her up, he laces his fingers in hers. Sometimes he even stares them down, but only when Kim is completely oblivious. She wouldn't approve at all.

However, sometimes, he can't quite control himself.

Right now he blames her cousin, Sarah. That girl has a tongue of a viper and strikes just as viciously. Between Maddie and Sarah, Jack wonders if Kim is an anomaly among the Crawford girls. Kim is sarcastic, but is genuinely warm and does not kick people when they are down. Something he would not say about Sarah.

They are hanging out that Sunday after Bobby's party before the Tennessee contingent has to leave (and he is counting hours), when Sarah brings the subject of Otai. He can see Kim tensing up and is not sure what the undercurrents are, but he decides to tread lightly, having already seen and heard Sarah's caustic attitude.

"Oh, I was just telling Kim the other day that she should enjoy her summer now. I hear in Otai they have strict rules about interactions with the outside world. Something about distraction from the art." Sarah does not quite roll her eyes, but it is so heavily implied. Jack has to give it to this girl: she not only implies that martial arts is really not an art at all (he disagrees, of course), but also suggests that Jack is nothing but a distraction to Kim (he hopes that he is so much more).

Before he or Kim can add anything, Sarah adds, "Of course, if you are completely isolated there, you'd have to interact with other students, no? And it is a co-ed place, right? And everyone there is in the top of their respective studios. Girl, you'd be surrounded by eye candy all the time..." Here Sarah trails off suggestively, but then, oh so innocently, catches herself and makes an apologetic face while looking straight at Jack.

Wow, this girl is good... Also, a vicious viper is not nearly as dangerous as her.

Jack looks at Kim, who is just seething at this point. "Sarah, you have to decide whether Otai and karate are worthy of pursuit or not. You can't have it both ways."

For his part, Jack only adds with a most suggestive of smirks, "We'll have to make sure that Kim has the best memories of Seaford, don't we?"

Both girls blush at that and Jack pats himself mentally on the back, even as his heart drops into his stomach at the thought of Kim with all those other top-notch karate students.

Her cousins leave and it is so late that he does not climb into her room that evening. Tomorrow it's back to work for him and he takes pride in his punctuality.

His thoughts are heavy with all the implications that Sarah laid out and he sleeps poorly that night.

Kim surprises him and meets him at the mall and they go to grab coffee. She apparently has some news to share.

They are in line at their coffee shop in the mall and when they reached the front, the young man behind the register gives Kim a suggestive smile.

"A medium latte, please," Kim says, not seeming to notice the guy eyeing her.

"I'll have a medium black coffee," Jack says in the coldest of ways. That obviously isn't enough to get the point across.

"Name?" The guy asks, looking at Jack coolly.

"Jack."

He writes his name on the cup and turns back to Kim with a small smirk.

"I already have yours, hon."

If looks could fucking kill...

"Oh, okay. Thanks," Kim says with that polite cute smile she always gives everyone.

Jack restrains himself, not wanting to cause a scene so early in the morning. He practically slams the money on the counter and does not wait for change. Jack throws his arm over Kim's shoulder and she looks at him with a smile and they walk to the "pick up" area to wait. Kim still has not noticed Jack's absolute fuming. For some reason, that just makes him angrier.

"Doesn't that bother you?" Jack asks, jaw set.

"Does _what_ bother me?"

"You know what I'm talking about. _That,_ " Jack says bitterly, scowling at the guy behind the counter.

"You're worried about that guy?" Kim asks, holding back a small laugh. Jack's eyes widen, but he says nothing. He drops his arm and crossed them in front.

"One medium black coffee for Jack."

He prides himself for not throwing the scalding drink in the guy's face.

"And... one medium latte for a Gorgeous Blonde."

Jack nearly spills hot drink all over himself. Kim just laughs and thanks the barista.

They exit the cafe without Jack climbing over the counter and beating the young man unconscious somehow. Kim is still laughing about the incident. Jack isn't exactly chipper.

"It's not funny," Jack says, his blood still boiling.

"I thought it was quite endearing," Kim says. Jack shoots her a look of hurt and anger.

"Oh yeah, it was fucking precious," Jack says, seething even more now. Kim's smile disappears quickly.

"Jack, do you really think you have to worry about some random barista?" Jack thinks for a moment. _Does_ he have to worry?

"I just didn't like the way he was looking at you," Jack says. He takes a gulp of his coffee and he doesn't even mind that it scorches his esophagus on the way down. "And what does it say about you when you do _nothing_ about it?"

"Do you seriously think I would ever do that to you?" Kim asks. Jack is caught off-guard by how furious she sounds. "Maybe you shouldn't be so jealous all of the time and have some trust in me. Have you ever considered that?" Kim asks, her words pointed and harsh to Jack's ears. He has not even noticed that his coffee dropped to the ground.

"I... I... You're such a flirt and a tease!" Jack countered, lacking the mental stability to come up with a reasonable argument.

"Oh, so it's my fault now? I did not do anything, but order coffee! You are being unreasonable and see things that are no there!"

"You know what? I have a job to attend to and I would rather not waste my time arguing with you!" Jack yells, stomping on the cup at his feet. Kim looks a bit taken aback, but she glares.

"I also have something to attend to," she says through gritted teeth.

When they storm away from each other, Jack realizes that this is their first real fight.

His day at the dojo is filled with to the brim with kids and training sessions and while he is busy, his mind is free to roam. He knows he is in the wrong: Kim really has not done anything out of the norm. She is gorgeous and he can't blame guys for being taken with her. And her smiling? She is polite, but she hardly flirts with strangers. So, yeah, this fight is his fault.

Truthfully, this fight was not about the jerk from the coffee shop. Jack has enough introspection to know that he is lashing out because of what Sarah has said: Kim may leave (and he worries that he is not enough for her to stay put in Seaford) and she would be secluded there (will she forget him) and would be surrounded by other guys (will she fall in love with someone else).

He knows he has to make the first move now, so he calls... And calls... And calls...

She doesn't answer his calls... Or his texts... He left her voicemail, but still - no answer.

Jack is actually in panic mode now.

He kind of does not care (he does) if she goes to Otai in the end of the summer right now. He'd rather have the rest of the summer with her. And here he is - ruining it all by himself.

He is a jealous idiot.

"Fuck, she hates me now. Why didn't I just keep my fucking mouth shut? Why can't I just be a normal human being for once?" he says after umpteenth phone call goes to the voicemail.

"What did you do?"

Jack nearly jumps two feet in the air startled by the sudden question. He turns and sees Milton standing inside the dojo. It is close to the end of the day and most kids have been picked up, so its just him and a few more stragglers, who are just sitting quietly watching TV.

Jack is silent. He actually does not know how to even explain to his friend the issue here.

Milton looks pensive and then nods his head.

"So I am going to assume that it involves Kim, right?" Jack can only nod.

"And you said or done something stupid and she is mad at you right now." Another nod.

"Well, you should know that you are in good company. 78% of new couples will have their first fight in first three weeks of the relationship. How long have you and Kim gone out by now?"

"Four weeks..."

"See, you already beat the odds." Milton has the most bizarre way or reassuring people.

"So, out of 78% that fight, how many make up?" Jack isn't sure why be is asking, but if he has statistics on his side he might feel better.

"About half breakup for good, because there is nothing to fall back on. Unless the physical attraction is very strong. But those end up being very volatile relationships."

"Half of them breakup? Dude, that's not helping me at all."

"Well, I did say they break-up because there is nothing holding them together. You and Kim are friends. Very good ones. And you physical compatibility is strong if the state of her hair and bite mark on her shoulder at Bobby's party are any indication." Milton delivers this all very clinically and without a hint of awkwardness, which only makes Jack awkward.

His nerdy friend noticed the sexual tension and the hickey... and feels comfortable discussing this with him... He is glad Kim isn't here. She'd blush the reddest of red and then try to punch Milton. As it is, Jack is blushing for the two of them.

"Just how many people noticed that?"

"Don't worry. Jerry's oblivious, Bobby and Rudy are self-involved. Girls were ogling your abs and guys were checking girls out. I don't think anybody else noticed her debouched state."

"Debouched... Milton, really, can you talk like normal people? And who were the guys checking Kim out?" His tone changes from amused to hard in nanoseconds.

"Jack, guys noticing Kim is nothing new. I thought you'd be used to that by now..." Milton looks nonplussed.

"Yeah, I thought so too..." he trails off because that's the problem, isn't it?

Milton takes in Jack's sheepish face and sighs deeply, "let me guess, you got jealous and somehow made her feel like it's her fault?"

At Jack's quiet nod Milton shakes his head and drags out, "Jack... You are better than that. Kim is better than that. Why were you even jealous in the first place?"

"There was this barista..."

"You mean tallish, blond and wink-y?"

"You know him?" Jack's kind of irritated now. Why does Milton know about this guy?

"Yes, Jack. Logan has the morning shift and has been hitting on Kim for at least a year. Sometimes she gets drinks for free there. She usually drops the price of a drink in a tip jar... What I am saying is that it's harmless and Kim doesn't care about him."

"Well, I didn't know any of this! And how come I didn't?"

"Maybe because Kim knew you'd lose your mind over it and she made sure you didn't see it?"

Jack has nothing to say to that. Kim was right: he needs to trust her.

After a long silence he sighs, "what am I going to do now? She is mad at me..."

"In the movies, whenever something like this happens, the male can make circumstances better by making some sort of gesture. Kim is really a rather romantic girl, and she really is just convinced you are an insensitive berk right now, so even the most basic and commonplace gesture will fix the situation."

Jack looks up, confused. "What?"

Milton rolls his eyes. "Buy her flowers Jack. Get her sweets she likes. Give a trinket she would love..."

Jack thinks about this. "What, so I just have to buy her a bunch of roses? It's that simple?"

"No."

"But you said . . ."

"I said to buy her flowers. However, anyone can and will buy roses. You want to prove to Kim that you value her friendship and your relationship. Therefore you have to make this more personal."

"So I could add a note." Jeff nods.

Milton looks like he is rolling his eyes on the inside and sighs.

"MILTON! PLEASE! I'LL DO ANYTHING!" Jack pointedly ignores the confused stares from around him. He is cool enough to pull it off.

"You spent just as much time with her as I did. More even, because you went on that trip with her. Haven't you learned anything about what she likes?"

"Ughm... Well, she does like roses, but she said once that she prefers them on the actual plants, not cut and in the vase, because they are just dying when they are cut."

"See! You know something. So, maybe giving her a bouquet is not a good idea. Maybe you should skip the flowers then. Think, Jack."

"Kim likes sweets. A lot."

"Okay. Is there a specific kind?"

"I don't know! Chocolate maybe, ice cream. Why does it matter?"

"Au contraire, my friend. Try to remember: when you traveled did she like anything specific?"

"There was this one time we ate the shaved ice with some Japanese beans that she liked."

"Azuki beans and you'd have to find a Japanese grocery or a restaurant to get it. Think more Jack."

In the end, Jack and Milton, who apparently decided to help him in his quest to get Kim to forgive him, find the Japanese treat at a small restaurant in the next township. Jack is grateful to his friend: with Milton there he does not obsess over the fact that Kim still has not answered any of his calls and messages. He also stops by his place and grabs a little trinket he is sure she would like.

He changes and goes to Kim's house and when he rings the bell, he feels like his is going to break through the rib cage.

Her mom opens the door and smiles at him sympathetically, "She is in bad mood. Go and grovel before her dad decides he does not like you anymore."

Right. Chuck with his gun and a promise of broken legs.

He had formulated his apology about a million times since the fight. But nothing sounded quite right.

 _I'm such a jealous dumbass..._

He knocks on her door.

"Mom, I am not hungry!"

Jack swallows uneasily and clears his throat, "Maybe you'll have this dessert I got you?"

He can hear the gasp and the soft footfalls, but the door does not open.

"Please, Kim... It'll melt..."

A sigh, and then the door opens to reveal Kim in tank top and yoga pants with her hair pulled up in a pony tail.

"Hello, Jack. Are you still being unreasonable and jealous?"

Even mad and sarcastic, Kim is beautiful. At least she is talking to him.

"I am sorry. I really am. I was a jealous jerk and I know it has nothing to do with you."

She raises her eyebrows in disbelief.

"Well, it does have to do with you. Because obviously you are my girlfriend... Are you my girlfriend still?" Jack says, his voice is surprisingly steady. Kim shakes head and steps back to let him in.

"Jack, why were you jealous?" Kim is very serious and it's obvious she considers this a very important question.

"I... I... Look, I am always jealous. Even when we were not together. You attract attention wherever you go..." Kim makes a move to speak and he rushes in, "No, I know you don't do anything to call for it, but, you still do. Guys look at you, want to talk to you, want to be your friends. I get that. I just don't like it. It's like when you talking to them, its the time you are not spending with me."

Now that he said that he realizes it sounds really kind of possessive. "What I mean is that I want all of your attention, apparently. And I know it's weird and it's just my problem, not yours and I will work on it. Promise."

"I guess I can understand that. I want all of your attention too. But, Jack, we have to trust each other, right?" she looks up at him with big luminous eyes that look like she maybe cried before and he feels two inches tall and horrible for making her upset.

"Right. And I trust you. I don't trust other guys, but I trust you."

She nods at that and he feels the panic that he felt earlier recede.

"I got you something."

"Oh... You didn't have to..."

"I certainly did. What I said..." Jack says, taking a shaky breath. "Kim, I am so sorry."

"Jack, it's okay. You don't have to prove anything to me. I just want you to know I would never intentionally hurt you. It would be the very last thing I ever do," Kim says taking his hand.

Its a little awkward, because he still has the take out box of sweets in the other hand. He thrusts it into her hand and she looks at him in question.

"Its that sweet you liked from Japantown. Shaved ice with azuki beans. It's probably melting already. You shoudl eat it." Jack says it all very quickly, embarrassed and uncomfortable.

"Oh, that's so nice. Where did you find it?" Kim is smiling softly and Jack's embarrassment lifts.

"There is a small Japaneses restaurant in the next town. They have it on their menu..." he trails off because Kim is looking at him with that _aww_ look.

"Kim, stop it with the face. I can't refuse this face." Jack says in alarm and she giggles.

She takes his both hands and pulls him for a kiss. Just before their lips meet, she looks down at this wrist. "Jack? What?"

"I kept it all this time. I remembered..." Jack lifts his hand with her hand-made bracelet. Its a little tight, seeing as he grew since then, but its OK, because Kim is beaming at him and he knows he is beaming too.


	14. Chapter 14

Kim is excited for the new internship she is starting and she wants to share that news and excitement with Jack. She knows that Sarah and her poisoned words made Jack uncomfortable. The entire Otai scholarship now hung over them like a dark cloud. She is almost certain she is not going to go. And every time her and Jack spend time together she wants to go less and less. That's why she is excited for the internship. If it goes well, it would be just the thing that would finally seal the deal for her. She can re-focus her life a little with a view towards sports journalism. Karate will always be important to her, but being on camera and reporting gives her the thrill of accomplishment and excitement.

She shows up at the dojo in the morning on the way to the station. Jack is already there since the summer camp hours are meant to accommodate working parents and they open early. He is there and they go for coffee hand in hand. Jack is seemingly in good mood, but she sees the tension and wonders if its because of Sarah. The news about internship is literally on the tip of her tongue, when Jack's face turns dark and he is inexplicably angry with her. Then, that annoying barista with his usual wink and some flattering nickname for her completely sets Jack off.

Kim knows he is prone to jealousy. Seen and heard it many-many times. And while sometimes it is flattering, it is also kind of annoying. When they were not dating, these outbursts were a thrilling confirmation of his interest. Now that they are dating she is not sure it's that great. She wonders if he trusts her at all and she does not plan to accommodate his jealous nature. She laughs a little at his aggravation, hoping it would diffuse the situation, but Jack is having none of it. He is spoiling for a fight and even though she tries to hold her tongue, he pisses her off with that whole "flirt and tease" bit.

When he practically shouts that he has better things to do and stomps on his fallen cup, she is actually taken aback. And mad. And a little upset. She bites back something half-way intelligent and walks away before he can see her eyes tear up.

She only allows herself the twenty minutes to fret and obsess over this fight, but she has to be at the station and she does not want to be late.

Whatever she expected from the station, it is certainly different. Things are both more and less professional than the school channel. Equipment and the number of people make it much more intimidating, but the attitudes of people are so similar to her fellow students, who run the channel at school, that she feels weirdly at home and prepared. Apparently, someone remembered her epic take down of the school reporter away from the wrecking ball and the breezy summary of the strike and fight at the mall. She is kind of pleased with that. It gives her a leg up, because that footage has been shown on this particular station before.

Of course, she is still only an intern and is expected to run errands and fetch coffee. Which she does. Numerous times that day. It is exhausting, but she does not mind. She gets to see the anchors and directors and producers all working on what would the final product and it is exciting. Between the coffee runs and copying, she hardly has time to sit down.

She tries to be around the sports desk a little more and gets the chance to introduce herself to the correspondent and their editor. It's not big deal to them and they are kind of dismissive of her (of course, she is a girl and girls don't follow sports), but she will change their minds given a chance.

By the time she is done with her first day, she is exhausted, but she is actually glad for it. She did not have time to dwell on the fight with Jack and it is only now that she is going home, the implications of their fight catch on with her.

She saw his calls and messages, but she is not ready to talk to him. She is still mad and just as upset.

Is she making a mistake? Should she take the scholarship? How much of this jealousy can she shrug off? In the end of the day, she can't stop every guy from paying her attentions and its really a matter of Jack's trust in her, whether such attentions would be a problem for them. Should she keep the option of the Otai open for now? Because if Jack is unreasonable and they fight and break up, wouldn't she be an idiot for letting this opportunity go?

She gets home in sour mood. While her first day at the station was exciting, it is all spoiled by the fight with Jack. She mumbles something about not being hungry and goes to her room to wallow and check the pictures of the two of them from the trip to remind herself of the better days. Healthy stuff...

She is half-contemplating grabbing an ice-cream carton from the freezer to complete the cliché of the pity-party she has going on, when she hears a knock on her door.

* * *

It's Jack and he is so unlike himself right now - unsure and apologetic. She feels sorry for him, but they need to clear this out. He surprises her by admitting that he's aware of his jealousy being an irrational thing and oh that boy... Of course, she is his girlfriend still. She loves the idiot, even when he is a jealous idiot. And then he turns her to goo with that silly bracelet that she made and he kept...

They end up splitting the dessert together, practically drinking the dregs from the bottom of the carton. Their kisses are sweet and sticky and a little hungry, although she can feel that Jack is holding back, still unsure whether she's fully forgiven him.

Her mom let them know that Jack is welcome to stay for late dinner, but it is clear her parents think it's time for guests to leave. She kisses his check and, feeling bold and daring, whispers, "I'll keep the window open."

Jack's eyes widen and then darken in quick succession and she feels the familiar swoop of blood and something low in her belly and she practically runs to her bedroom.

* * *

Climbing the tree that grows near the back of the house reminds Jack of being a kid. He simply uses branches to get to Kim's window level. The branch almost reaches her window, but it gets thinner the farther it goes and he is not sure it would hold his weight. He'd have to jump.

Right. He can do it. And even if he falls, its not that far and he probably will live.

But the ledge is narrow and he is worried that he would simply break through the glass. So, he texts Kim to open the window all the way.

Almost immediately he can see the movement and the window lifts and Kim's anxious face is peeking at him. He crouches and she quickly moves inside the room and he launches himself before he can get too worried about the consequences. He somehow clears the window opening and is on the floor in the middle of her room with a thud.

She is next to him and is helping him up al the time whispering, "Oh god! This was a bad idea! Are you OK? Oh god..."

"Hey, hey... I am fine. Its nothing. I am fine..."

She looks at him with worried eyes and slowly looks over him. He pulls her head up with the fingers under the chin.

"I'm glad I'm here with you, Kim. You know that, right?"

Jack is mesmerized by the flutter of her eyelashes as she blinks up at him. "I do now."

She stretches on tiptoe, fingers smoothing through his stubble-lined jaw to bring him down to meet her. Their lips barely touch, the kiss too soft, too brief before she pulls away, but Jack's lips tingle at the sensation when the last time he kissed her when they were alone like this.

It feels like a lifetime ago.

They stand there looking a teach other in the twilight and Jack feels a little less weighed down by the truths he's uttered, a little better for his own honesty. He wants to tangle his hands in Kim's hair and tug her close, kiss her breath away, maybe savor the taste of her moan against his mouth. His gaze drops to her lips and further down to her chest rising rapidly on every shuddered breath and the lick of his lips is unconsciously done at this point.

"Jack."

He's startled for a moment but he knows she's caught him looking, knows what she can see written all over his face because it's written on hers too. "Kim."

She watches her fingers toy with a button on his shirt before slowly meeting his eyes. "Did you dress up to impress me?"

What? "What?"

She giggles.

"The button down that is actually buttoned down. That's a departure from you usual style." She says as she slides her fingers up and down the front of his shirt and it honestly turns him on.

 _God, yes._

His blood pumps harder. "I vaguely remember you saying you like when I dress up."

"Well, I do. But I also like you undressed."

 _Holy shit,_ _does she have any idea what she's doing to him?_

"You are evil." he stutters out and his hands come slowly to her sides.

"Mmm-hmm." She agrees and starts undoing the buttons from the top down, smoothing his skin with her fingertips, the touch light and electric.

Her neck arched, they watch each other intently as his hands glide slowly up her thighs, following the outer seam of her yoga pants up and over her hips. Sliding under her tank top to palm the soft curve of her waist, his fingertips rest on the dip of her lower spine. His thumbs swirl against her stomach in a way that has her muscles quivering.

Jack drops to his knees and kisses her torso beneath the edge of her bralet a couple of times, gently, leaving his lips to linger there for a moment. He peels the top from her body, fingers skimming her everywhere, soft yet greedy, his breath hot against her skin.

Kim reaches to take off her top, letting it fall behind her. Jack hugs her around the waist and straightens up to take three more steps to her bed. He places her there and goes back to kissing her, his hands on her bralet. He can't find the closure and with an impatient growl he lifts off to inspect it. She giggles again and just pulls it off and then he stares are her naked breasts. She is flushed again, and he know she is still unused him seeing her naked (how? how?) and he watches in fascination as her blush travels down. She whispers _Jack_ and he finally drops back to kiss her and then he is nuzzling her nipple with the tip of his nose, not once taking his eyes off her face or the way her mouth parts with his every touch. His hands clutch greedily at her butt and Kim slides her fingers through his hair, breath stuttered and uneven as Jack circles her nipple with his tongue before sucking it fully into his mouth.

"Oh..." Her head rolls back and she whimpers throatily, breathlessly, as he licks and sucks at her breast.

He can feel her clawing at his shirt, tugging it up across his back, and Jack lifts his arms long enough for Kim to remove it. She stares at him and he knows she is as turned on as he is. Her eyes are hooded and dark and he uses his hands to start pulling her pants down. He lowers his mouth for more but Kim fists his hair to tug his mouth up to hers, shifting to straddle his lap as their lips meet in a heated kiss. He presses her closer to him tightly, but then lets go, worried that he would leave bruises.

But its all in vain. He can't be too gentle, not when Kim starts a slow roll of her hips, grinding against his erection beneath his jeans, and, fuck, this is good. Jack moans into her mouth before rolling them both back onto the bed until he's on top of her. Kim clutches at his butt and curls her thigh up against his hip and he obliges by pressing down on her.

Somehow their hands meet like magnets, fingers intertwining between them in a delicate dance before Jack pulls away to mouth down the smooth skin of her inner arm, kissing the pulse and knit of blue veins of her inner elbow, all the way up to her shoulder where he dusts the skin so softly Kim gasps and giggles at the sensation.

He loves the sound. He loves... _He loves this girl..._

He actually stops to stare at her. He loves her. And she is his.

His heart stutters a little just as his cock grows harder yet.

Their gazes clash then and the smile slips from Kim's face slowly.

"Kim, I -"

"Yes, yes, Jack. Just... touch me, now. Right now."

 _God, this is too good._

"Open your legs." he does not recognize his own voice. Its all gravelly and hard.

She parts her thighs instantly, and _oh_ she is so beautiful, and bites her lower lip as Jack maps the flesh of her inner thighs with kisses and fingertips, tracing the crease where pelvis meets torso, and Kim's hips lift instinctively with every touch closer to where they both want him the most. He is torturing himself and her by going slow, walking his fingers, print by print, and he practically feel the heat building in her as she trembles and sighs _oh oh_ …

She squeaks as he finally lowers his mouth, gazing up at her between the valley of her breasts, as his jaw works against her, his fingers burrowing in. There's a heat in her eyes and she is thrusting up against his mouth and mewling little stuttered breaths and he seriously is so turned on right now, the coil of pleasure and _need_ and _want_ tightens in his lower back.

"Oh god." She slaps and fists the sheets tight, not sure what else to do with her hands. "I can't…just…oh yes like that, _Jack_ …"

 _Yes, yes, Kim, let go, come for me_ , he hums and the vibration must have done her in, as she clamps down on his fingers (so tight!) and she is trembling all over, panting little _ohs_ and _Jacks._ Jack works her through it with every slick caress of his tongue until she's shuddering from the sensitivity. When he finally pulls away, he drops his head on her thigh and just breathes through his own arousal, holding out the urge to just hump her.

She pulls on his hand and he climbs up, hissing as his cock, still pressed against he zipper of the jeans, bumps into her. She pushes him down and her hand slides to the fly. He helps her eagerly, too far gone to make it graceful and their hands bump into each other, but finally he is free and her small hand is on him. _Yes..._

She lowers her head onto him and her hair obscures the view and it does not matter. He nearly cries out at the sensation and Kim wraps her mouth and hand around him. He is incoherent right now and is desperate to feel the heat of her mouth and tongue. Her other hand creeps up his chest, he can feel his abs quiver, and then her clever fingers are on his nipple and he is beyond keeping quiet. He is grunting and groaning through lips that he bit down on. She hums as if in approval and holy fuck...

"Do it again," and his voice is a hiss and a rasp and she does it again...

He can't help himself and trusts his hips up and something happens because he is suddenly thrusting deeper than ever before and that sensation makes him see spots and plead endlessly, head rolling back and forth against the pillow, heart pounding hard.

" _Fuck_ , Kim, I'm gonna..." he does not finish because he finally crests and with a whole body jerk he comes deep in her mouth _._

He collapses back against the pillows, sweat-slicked and satiated, muscles trembling, his harsh panting the only sounds he can hear, because his blood is still pumping loudly in his ears. Kim climbs up and and rolls onto her side and Jack soon follows, his chest pressed damply against her back as he maneuvres her to fit just so.

 _I love you_ , he thinks.


	15. Chapter 15

They lay tangled for a while as their breathing evens out. Jack feels weirdly naked. Well, he is naked, but he means naked because of his realization about Kim and that he loves her. It feels enormous, this realization. Like, there should be some visible indicators that he had this epiphany (he spends way too much time with Milton).

But everything looks the same.

He wants to shout or whisper or something about his feelings, but this moment, this afterglow is so quiet and he does not want her to think he is saying this because of her spectacular blowjob. Or because they had a fight and just made up.

And he does not want to appear as if he manipulating the situation. Like, she has to decide she wants to stay here on her own. Not because she would be breaking his heart by leaving.

God, having feelings is complicated and sucks.

Well, not really.

He moves to sprawl flat on his back, taking Kim with him, so now she is on her side and put her hand on his chest. Jack feels the press of Kim's fingers walking the length of his sternum. He sinks further into the pillow with a hum of content as she quietly sketches the contours of his ribcage, the indents of the abdominal muscle, a small scar, couple of moles. Everything has a satisfied exhausted sort of focus when he casts his eyes to look at her. She is stretched out on her side, resting on one elbow, eyes eagerly following the path and pattern of her hand. His pulse quickens as she edges her fingers down the happy trail that has his muscles tensing and then she works her way back up to his chest.

Oh, wow... He guesses his refractory period is short...

His voice is gruff as he croaks, "Kim."

"I knew that teenaged guys are always horny, but really..." she muses, biting her lips and blushing.

Jack rolls onto his side, smiling as Kim buries her face in the pillow. "Well, it helps that someone's trying to feel me up."

He hears a muffled gasp, her wide eyes peeking out behind messy strands of hair which she tries to blow out of the way a couple of times without any success. "I wasn't feeling you up," she says, giving up with a huff.

"Hmm." Jack combs away the stray strands obscuring her vision, tucks them behind her ear. "I guess you're right. And that was for educational purposes."

"Shut up!" she laughs, moving closer until Jack can practically taste the brush of her minty breath.

They smile at each other in silence, and Kim's eyes flit all over his face as though she's relearning every slope and hollow. Jack wants to give in to that impulse too, but he's a little disturbed by the swoop and sway of his stomach and the sudden uncertainty over what to do or say next because his epiphany – _crap!_ – epiphany has changed him in some inexplicable ways and but it's enough to wonder whether Kim's pulse is racing as fast as his, whether she too senses this change in him.

"So, I guess I have to go soon," he finally says, and it's pretty much all he can manage right now.

Kim flushes a little, nuzzling his nose softly with her own and pressing a kiss to the corner of his mouth. "Yeah, I guess so."

Jack swallows thickly, completely unused to such gentleness, "So…"

"So, I have started my internship!" Kim blurts out and it takes Jack a second to comprehend the words.

"Internship? Is that the news you tried to tell me this morning?"

"Yeah..." Kim trials off, her face a little sad again, no doubt remembering how the morning went. "I am an intern at the TV-station now." She looks at him expectantly.

"Wait.. Do you have time for internships?" Jack's heart is hammering away. What does it mean? Is she still going to Otai?

"Its only for six weeks. I want to see if I like journalism as a possible job. You know I liked doing it for the school. Well, maybe I'll like it as a profession..."

"Okay... But what about Otai and karate?" His heartbeat is practically visible by this point.

"I want to see if I like sports journalism." she says quietly and he understands. Of course he does. He is thinking about his future too.

"So, by the end of the internship, it will be the end of the summer..."

"Yes. And I will have to respond to Otai then." Kim says it while looking at him and he does not know what to feel right now.

She is balancing her future between possible career choices and it does not sound like she would be considering their future together.

His heart, that was just beating a mad tattoo of hopeful anticipation, skips a beat and his chest feels weirdly hollow.

"I want to have an idea where I would go after school, but my parents always say that I should do what makes me happy. And there are so many things that make me happy..." She continues and looks at him again with _the face_ \- all soft eyes, quiet smile, something like awe written all over her features.

Oh... oh... _oh!_

His heart beat picks up again and he can't stop his smile from growing wide, "So six weeks to decide whether you like journalism?" and _whether you love me_ , he thinks.

"Six weeks."

He has six weeks to make her fall in love with him (and get her to admit it).

He can do it. He just needs a plan.

* * *

Next morning he comes to her house bright and early with a medium latter in hand. Her dad opens the door and rolls his eyes, "Hi, Jack. Kim! Your shadow is here!"

"Good morning, Chuck." Jack could be polite if he needs to. And Chuck is an important ally.

He hears quick footsteps and Kim comes from the kitchen, wearing a dress and some sort of jacket over it. She looks good if sleepy. Of course, he is the reason for that. He did not leave her place until much later last night. He is smiling to both the memory and the girl in front of him.

"Jack? What are you doing here so early? What about the camp?"

"Jerry and Milton are covering for me right now. I wanted to take you to your job. I got you the latte. For a Gorgeous Blonde." he says lifting the cup in his hand.

Her eyes widen and then narrow, "Jaaaack... I thought we were over it."

Crap!

"We are! I stopped at the Java Jolt, got you your drink, and was even polite to Logan! I swear!" At her raised brow Jack adds, "I promise Kim, its all good."

She looks at him for a moment and then nods, "Okay. Would you pick me up too in the evening?"

She talks and walks past him, grabbing the cup out of his hand.

"Yes, that's the plan."

They exit her house and are by the car, when she finally turns to him and lifts herself to give him a slow kiss, "Good morning."

"Good morning," Jack whispers into the kiss.

"Didn't want to give my dad a show," she continues while nibbling on his lower lip.

"Good idea. Although we should stop now if we want to be on time."

She kissed him one last time and goes to sit in the car.

Jack can't help but watch her every move now, even the most mundane ones.

Somehow knowing in his heart that he is in love with her, makes every movement, every breath and every blink so much more intense. It is like switching a video from the lowest quality setting to the highest; everything is so much clearer now… he kicks himself for not noticing so many things before.

He doesn't like to get too deep into his thoughts but if he has to pick out one of the newest Kim discoveries to be his favorite, it would probably be the tiny little crease between her brow that forms every time she is challenged or questioned upon. He'd always noticed it before, but now for some reason he is fixated on the fact that it is just _always_ there whenever she thinks deep.

"So, why the chauffeur services this morning?" Kim asks as they start moving.

"Oh, just wanted to spend as much time with my girlfriend as possible." he says nonchalant and steals a glance at her.

She is smiling with a knowing look, "Jack, really, you are forgiven for yesterday. Promise."

"Still. With you and I both busy with work, I want to make time for you." He can't believe he just said that. He sounds all mature and grown up. This girl... what she is doing to him...

She does not reply, but her smile is soft and he counts this as a point to him.

They arrive at the station and he walks her to the building entrance. There is a gangly guy passing by, who lifts his head from the his phone briefly and waves a hand at Kim. She returns the gesture and Jack is NOT jealous. She is friendly and this must be her co-worker.

"That's Matt. He is the computer support guy for the studio. Helpful to know, because staff goes wrong all the time. Or so I was told."

"Oh... Are you supposed to fix it?"

"Well, no. I am not exactly sure what I am supposed to do, other than to assist in every way. But, I would be doing some statistics culling and compilations for the actual news reports and a working computer is a key. So I made friendly with Matt. He is nice. Told me to come for help anytime."

 _I bet he did._

Jack swallows his jealousy and puts a smile on. "All right, Ms. Reporter, I have to go now to the little monsters that are disguised as children."

Her laughter is tinkling bells and she kisses him for a good minute before letting him go. "Good luck."

They send little silly messages to each other all day. Occasionally, Kim goes silent and he guesses she is busy with coffee runs and copying. At least that's what she says. Then, she texts to say that she'd be busy a little late today because she is asked to run some stats or something. She does not text or call until almost 6 in the evening and then she sounds harried.

"Yeah, I am sorry, but I'll be here for a little longer. You don't have to wait for me. Dad said he'd pick me up whenever."

"Don't worry. I'll wait."

This is perfect, Jack thinks. He gets her favorite order at Phil's and goes to the station to surprise his super busy future correspondent girlfriend.

When he finds her in a little room, no bigger than the closet, she is frazzled. Apparently, the statistics she is compiling are necessary for the morning show and that crew comes at 4AM, so she has to finish it for them before that. She is almost done, she swears, and Matt is a great help. And Matt is staying late to help her.

 _Of course he is_. Jack is now glad he came here with food to surprise her.

He shows her his offering and she squeals. Apparently she had little time for lunch and just had an apple.

"Jack, you are so thoughtful. You are the best. Thank you."

She is giving him the face again and he shuffles uncomfortable. "Kim, the face... stop it.'

Kim's brow lifts in amusement and they watch each other wordlessly for a long moment before they break into laughter at the ridiculousness of it all. When the noise of it ebbs away, her eyes dart rapidly between his and she bounces a little on tiptoe, biting her lower lip in the best way as she runs a fingertip down the side of his face like she just can't contain her affection for him. Jack flinches in surprise at the tenderness and tightens his grip on her collar, kissing away whatever she was about say.

Their mouths clash pretty roughly at first and Kim whimpers low, clutching at his shoulders desperately as she sinks into him, their make-out dissolving into an unhurried deliberate sort of dance, lips soft and searching, hands stroking tugging pinching at paths of skin. Jack groans, distantly aware that they are at her place of work, as he slides his hand into her hair and lifting her up with his other arm, when a sharp knock sounds on the door.

He wrenches his mouth away with a huff. "Who the hell is that?"

"Oh!" Kim flaps and flusters as she rushes to retie her hair. "It must be Matt."

Jack steps away from Kim and wrenches open the door to a tall nerd from earlier this morning. "What?"

"Jack!" Kim snaps, turning to smile apologetically at the guy watching them – his expression dancing the line of disdain and curiosity. "Sorry, Matt. This is Jack, my boyfriend. Came here with food and to take me home. Did you figure out the issue with the spreadsheet?"

The guys nods efficiently and wanders into the room with purpose and sits a the computer.

She's still a little breathless and scattered as she looks at Jack and hisses, "Did you have to be this rude? He is helping me."

"Like I'm gonna be all sunshine and smiles after being interrupted by some super helpful computer guy." Jack tries and fails to hide the jealousy.

"Interrupted?" Kim folds her arms sharply, eyeing him cynically now, though Jack can see the amusement sparkling there. Thankfully. "What makes you think I was going to go any further with you?"

He scoffs and gestures at his own body. "Please."

Her chin juts in challenge as she steps a little closer. "You think you're so sexy and irresistible don't you?"

"You did not resist last night." He grins, as cheeky and smug as he's ever been.

"You arrogant..." she whisper-shrieks.

"Kim, its fixed. Is there anything else you need?" Matt's tone is sharp and Jack guesses that he overheard them.

Kim startles with a gasp and rushes to the computer to lean over Matt's shoulder and look at the screen.

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you. I owe you one." She gushes to Matt with a variation of _the face_ and its amazing to see how Matt nearly blushes and stammers something like _'its nothing_.'

So he is not the only one, who can't resist _the face_.

"Yeah, thank you Matt. Kim, how much longer do you need to complete this report?" Jack ushers Matt out into the hallway, slamming the door in his face and dusting his hands together satisfactorily, muttering " _It's nothing_ " under his breath as he re-joins Kim by the desk. "What's wrong?"

"That is the second person we've been interrupted by someone and they knew we were…" Kim blinks at the door vacantly, gesturing vaguely to include him and her. "My private life has never been so... public."

"A-ha!" Jack grins, pointing at her firmly. "See, you admit it. We would be making out right now if Matt hadn't interrupted us. Admit it."

"Now I guess you'll never know." She adjusts her jacket and sits back at the computer.

"Okay, Kim," he smirks. "I believe you."

"Was that you being sarcastic?" she calls out over her shoulder. "That's usually my thing."

"Oh, you are rubbing off on me." He says and she laughs hard at that.

Jack stands there for a moment, grinning wide at her, watching as she types away, listening to Kim mention all the technical issues that bugged this particular report. She sounds so important and excited that he can't help but be excited too. She grabs her food from the tray and sighs in satisfaction and he is stupidly proud of thinking to bring her food. He wonders if showing Kim how he feels about her results in _this_ – this kind of fluttery happy feeling pooling low in his belly – well, maybe telling her wouldn't be so bad.


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: I don't know, guys, this Kick is making me write mostly fluff. So, our couple are both in love, haven't said it to each other and we are halfway through the summer already. P.S. Your reviews are most appreciated.

* * *

That Tuesday after the fight and the epiphany set the tone for the week. Whenever he could Jack would surprise Kim with coffee in the morning or a lunch break. He does no always get to drive her to and from work, but its enough. Kim is enjoying her internship and everything between them is light and easy. He climbs into her window once more mindful of Kim's dad and his gun, but they manage enough alone time that he does not have to take too many cold showers.

Its Saturday and both of them are finally free. They are supposed to go to the beach with guys and Grace and Jack is picking Kim up. Her mom informs him that she made enormous amounts of food and they are obligated to eat it before they go.

He finds Kim in the kitchen.

She's wearing a white loosely fitting dress that is short and flow-y. They have not seen each other since Thursday and Jack drinks her in. His unruly heart is already thudding when he spots her wearing the kind of muted smile people get when they think no one is looking and picks a ripe peach from a tray, brushing the soft skin against her nose, inhaling deep. Jack's heart thunders violently against his ribcage and _holy crap_ he needs to rein it in a little because seriously, she's not even looking at him.

When Kim finally notices him, she flicks her hands with a grand flourish at the coffee pot, bowls of fruit and basket of pancakes now neatly laid out on the table. " _Ta-da!_ "

Jack sighs as he sinks weightily into a seat. "More breakfast... My mom already loaded me up. All these pancakes..."

"What is wrong with pancakes?"

"Carbs overload."

"Oh, and you can't go to the dojo today to burn it all off." Kim curls one arm around his neck and smoothing a palm across his pecs which he instinctively flexes a little. "Poor baby."

A shiver rolls through him at the feel of her breath against his ear, and he trails his hand to stroke the length of her thigh because he likes the little shudder she makes when he does. "You're mocking me?"

"Moi? Never."

"Lies." Jack's hands slide to her waist where he tickles her until she shrieks and squirms giddily in her seat.

"No, no, stop, Jack, stop," she laughs heartily. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry!"

"So ticklish," he grins, bringing his fingers to a halt and pinching her waist.

A little flustered and breathless, Kim elbows his stomach. "Jerk."

"Play nice or I'll do it again."

" _Fine_."

She pouts sullenly and Jack watches her with raised brows until her face breaks into a cheeky smile and his does too. Kim kisses his temple and rests her forehead against his and they both take a contented breath, watching each other slightly cross-eyed.

Jack can hear the _thud thud_ of his heart in his throat.

They hear footsteps and Kim suddenly pulls back, coughing a little raggedly, and reaches for a pancake, biting off a chunk with relish, mouthing "Mmm" around the grind of her jaw.

He grins. "Enjoying that?"

"Mmm-hmm, all the carbs" she nods, tearing off another portion, uncaring of the flakes sprinkling her lap. "Here."

"No."

"But it's yummy!" she sing-songs.

Jack twists his head this way and that to dodge the food offering, mumbling amused when Kim forcefully stuffs it into his mouth with a victorious, _"Ha!"_

"Stop doing that," he swallows and has to appreciate that this is a good pancake. "Seriously though Kim, you've gotta stop shoving food in my mouth. I have abs to maintain."

"They look pretty well maintained to me," she beams, briefly patting his abdomen before reaching for one of the china bowls. "What about some fruit? That's good for you."

His eyebrows rise as she traces the tip of a strawberry around his lips, her eyes following its path.

"Okay but you know I can feed myself, right?"

"Yes," she grins, almost wickedly, but her fingertips hover gently against his lips while he chews.

He does not know what this is about, but Kim is in a seriously romantic mood.

* * *

The whole week after the fight Jack is on his best behavior. Like he is aiming for a best boyfriend award.

And winning it.

Kim does not think life can get better than right now.

Her internship is awesome. Its a lot of crazy work and not all of it is even related to news or journalism, but she knows that it takes all kinds of tasks to get things done.

After that first stats report, she was given more of the research assignments. Maybe calling them research is too generous. Typically, she has to compile some facts and stats; cross-reference any links; checks the legitimacy of sources, etc. Still, it is exciting. She can see how that information is used and she feels accomplished every time she hands one over. She is never more thankful to being paired with Milton on projects, because he is methodical and she has learned a lot from him about research.

She managed to talk to the sports correspondent some more and threw in the facts that she is a cheerleader, whose squad participated in competitions, a gymnast, and a martial artist. Maybe it will get her somewhere.

Today she and Jack are going to the beach with friends and the breakfast at her house sets the mood. She missed him on Friday, because he was busy at the dojo and she had another late report to prepare. But right now, they are in the car alone and will spend the entire day together.

Sighing contentedly, feeling relaxed and happy and strangely accomplished she steals a glance at Jack seating in the driver's seat; his strong hand clasped tightly around hers in a way that sends a shiver right down to her toes at how big he is, how masculine.

Sometimes she can't believe he's here with her, like this.

Jack must sense her staring as his head tilts in her direction. Kim can't see his eyes behind the darkened lens of his sunglasses but his mouth quirks upwards and when he squeezes her hand and brings it to his mouth, kissing it softly with a lingering smudge of his lips and his breath, her heart scores an almost violent beat.

Well. _Those butterflies_.

They drive to the meeting place, following the curve of the coast with the windows down and salt air whipping through the car. Jack has his elbow propped on the sill and Kim pushes her seat back, crossing her feet on the dash. He casts an amused glance over them but doesn't say anything.

The moment is so perfect right now, Kim wants to preserve it forever.

They meet up with their friends on the beach and it is already full, but they get enough space on the sand to put up two umbrellas and spread their blankets. While guys were setting up, Kim and Grace go to the changing rooms.

Kim finishes up and pats herself down to make sure everything is in place. What she's wearing shows quite a bit of her body... And her bikini. The white bikini with black piping all over the bra cups and the edges of bottoms. She bought it for this summer because Grace said, "Daaaaaaaaaaaamn, girl!" in the dressing room when Kim tried it on. She may not be totally confident in her body, she's at least confident that this bikini looks really good on her.

Grace is in a colorful set with a flounce in the front (to make it look like I have boobs, Kim!) and the girls leave the changing rooms together.

Guys are already playing, throwing Frisbee at each other and it's only when Jerry's jaw falls open that Jack turns to look at them... and misses the Frisbee that smacks him on the side of the head. Kim just laughs pleased that Jack got slack jawed and distracted.

"Oh, go ahead, continue. Grace and I will just go splash in the water while you play, right?" Kim says lightly, pulling her hair in a top knot.

She's never worn an actual string bikini before that is held onto her body with bows and a prayer. But his reaction is totally worth it.

Jack is staring at her, mouth slightly agape, and Kim resists the urge to fist pump. Wouldn't go with the whole sexy bombshell vibe she is going for.

Kim," he breaths, "you look…" He shakes his head.

She rolls her eyes and turns toward the sparkling sand, and when she does, Jack actually chokes. Her butt, she is pleased to note, looks fantastic in this bikini. Kim is grinning outright, adding a little extra sway to her hips as she walks away from him.

Two steps.

That's all it takes for him to catch her, one strong arm banded around her waist, pulling her flush against him. "Where do you think you're going?"

She arches, just a bit, pressing her butt against his thighs. "To take a dip in the ocean. Lie on the beach. Get a little bit of a tan. Admire the view." His grip on her tightens, a second arm snaking around her rib cage. Kim squirms in his hold. "Don't you have the game to go back to?"

"No, I have a hot girlfriend, who should not be left alone unsupervised in this bikini. Do you have a cover-up?" His whisper is hot and breathy in her ear and she squirms some more.

"Jack... We are in public..."

"This bikini is not meant for public! Kim... you are killing me." he says and kisses her in her weak spot, where the neck meets the shoulder.

She hears a thwacking sound and Jack curses out, "Jerry! What the hell?!"

"I am not losing the day on the beach because you two can't keep your hands off of each other." Jerry says irritated and Kim guesses that Grace is not giving him a time of day.

Jack looks a little frustrated and she feels sorry. She takes his hand and tugs him towards the water, "Let's go and cool off a little." She lowers her voice and whispers, "They can't see what is happening underwater..."

He looks at her wild eyed. "You are evil, Kim. I don't think I'll survive to live past my 18th birthday."

She laughs at that, "It's only couple of days away. I think odds are in your favor. Plus, you have to live to see my gift."

She takes off running into the ocean with him hot on her heels.

The whole day goes like that. Its light and fun, their happiness effervescent like the fuzzy summer drinks and shining like the sun. The energy, the fire between them is just a simmering glow and they flirt and tease, but don't step over the boundaries of propriety. They take advantage of the ocean and kiss while in water, with Kim wrapping her legs around Jack and just floating in water. If their kisses are a little salty, so much the better. Every dip in the water is followed by lathering of sunblocks and its another opportunity to sneak in secret caresses while in public. They must no be very good at it, because Jerry pulls a Frisbee again and threatens to use it.

Kim is incandescently happy.

* * *

They drive home with Grace in the back seat and Jack is visibly disappointed. She is too.

But Grace and Jerry have weird relationship, where there isn't an actual relationship, but rather both parties yearning and not yielding. She suspects that Jerry would yield easily, but he does not want to be serious right now and Grace... Grace does not know what she wants, but she is definitely attracted. So, they have this push and pull dance and for a while, Kim and Grace were each others' shoulder to cry on. Only now Kim's relationship with Jack is actually happening, but Grace and Jerry are still in their holding pattern. Right now, somehow, Jerry pissed Grace off and she does not want to go with him.

They drop Grace off and she mouths _sorry_ to Kim, motioning with her hand towards stiff looking Jack in the driver's seat. Kim shrugs her shoulders and mouths back _no problem_.

They take off again and Jack simply drives her home, silent and seemingly upset. It's already darkening by the time they get to the Kim's neighborhood and they are passing the small nearby park with a side driveway, when Kim grabs Jack's hand, "Stop right here."

Startled, Jack slams the breaks and they come to an abrupt stop. "What?"

"Sorry! I meant to say pull over here." she looks at him apologetic and runs her hand over his tense arm.

"Jesus, Kim! You nearly gave me heart attack."

"Sorry, sorry." She whispers and continues to rub her hand over his, now fully turning towards him in her seat.

"Why did we need to stop here anyway?" he says and she shakes her head.

"Because," she says, gropes at his neck and pulls him to her for a kiss.

There is a moment of hesitation from him, but then he kisses her back. He puts his arms around her waist and pulls her into his lap, dragging her over the central console and without missing a beat her legs open on top of his so she's straddling him and the sound he makes is embarrassingly close to a whimper. When she leans forward so her breasts are pushing up against his chest, the sound he makes definitely is one.

The two of them form a rhythm, rocking backwards and forwards against each other in a way that feels so good but every tightening grip he has on her body tells her it's not quite enough for him either. It's not enough space, but the whole day was like one long teasing foreplay and she just wants to feel him.

She loves the way he kisses, she realizes; loves to pull away just enough to see the furrow of concentration in his brow, like this is a task he has to do perfectly. She loves to kiss him and feel the tension and strength in his muscles, until their kisses have gone from something fervent and hungry, until the slide of her tongue against his is almost lazy.

 _"Jack,"_ she breathes, pulling away from his mouth.

He's not answering. He's focusing on her neck and cupping her butt and she congratulates herself for her foresight, because she is wearing a dress instead of shorts.

He pulls her up, just a little, and her legs widened their stance and she plants her knees firmly on the side of his hips. She slides down, mewling into his mouth, and moves her lips down his jaw.

"Oh, Kim..." he croaks as she is straddling his rapidly hardening cock, and his teeth are biting at her lips. This new position also frees up his hands which is a definite improvement. He slides them up her legs, resting them on her hips, helping her work herself against him.

"I want... I want..." she blushes a little at this and then whispers into his ear, "I want to feel you, skin to skin..."

She can feel him shudder and he mutters _fuck_ as his hands rush to comply.

The zipper of his shorts is undone and he shoves them and his underwear down enough to free up his erection and it is already pretty hard, resting against his lower abdomen.

She looks down at it and is momentarily distracted by the sharp V of his lower abs and the curve of the muscle on the hip that is so pronounced. He is so good looking.

She does not get to dwell too long, as his hands are now on her hips and he slides them under her dress... and stop abruptly, "Commando, Kim?" His eyes widen and he smirks at her, "Have you planned this?"

"Are you complaining?" she says as she lowers herself on him and the underside of his cock lines up with the seem of her lips and... _oh it's feels so good_.

"Nnnnooo..." comes his strangled reply. "I like a girl who is a planner."

Kim seriously can't stop herself and keeps rolling her hips over him, making sure the tip of the cock hits her clit on every stroke. It feels amazing, just as does Jack's mouth on her breasts. Somehow, without her noticing, he pulled the neckline of the dress down and already has one nipple in his mouth. His tongue and teeth work in tandem to further sensitize her. Its all too much and she can feel the first tremors of the orgasm that has been building this whole day ripple through her. Her hand drifts down to where they are sliding against each other and a few more strokes over her clit, she is coming apart with a soft _Oh, Jack_ whispered into his neck.

She is still breathless and tingly all over and her thighs ache in that way that she knows that tomorrow she'd be sore, but Jack is not done yet. He grabs hold of her hips with his ridiculously large hands and proceeds to move her over him, thrusting upwards in unison. His grip is hard and he practically pistons up again and again with the force and speed that has her imagining other ways he would be doing that, and _oh god, he is so strong_...Its almost a frenzy of movement and sound, his breath is harsh and loud and she leans over to kiss him below his ear, where he is sensitive. As if this is the thing he needed, Jack squeezes her hips even harder, curls his body into her and _bites_ into her neck as he comes.


	17. Chapter 17

A/N: We arrived at the smut. You can skip this chapter, because it is essentially a PWP. As usual, let me know if any of this can be improved. I appreciate all you comments.

* * *

Kim sends the message to Jack and now all she has to do is wait. Which is kind of difficult. Her heart is swooping low, her breathing is erratic, she almost light headed.

This is it, she thinks. It's going to happen today. Now.

She planned it. She planned and plotted and now it's all coming together.

She is "working from home." Technically, that is. She is meant to do another report. This time is actually a background memorandum on a specific piece of ordinance that the city council is reviewing. The producer and editor seem to think she can do it and she can. She is meant to go to the municipal archives and the library to do the old school research. Really, the editor thinks it would be great if they can have pictures of the old versions of the ordinance to give the sense of history. Kim actually asked Milton to help. Not to go to library, but in general explain the process of the city council voting. He was so helpful and efficient that she is done with most of her work and has free time now.

She called Jerry and Rudy and they agreed to help. Jack would be free to come with her.

It's his birthday today and although the party is this weekend, she wants to give her present now.

She hears Jack knock and she shouts, "it's open."

"Kim, what is it? Your text was weird. Where are you?" Jack comments as he enters the house.

"Upstairs. And my message was vague on purpose." Kim says, while trying to sooth the butterflies in her stomach.

"It's not an emergency though, right?" He asks.

"You'll see." Kim giggles.

He enters the room and stops when he sees the room decorated with balloons and the banner saying "Happy 18th Birthday!"

Kim is still hidden in her closet and exclaims loudly, "Surprise!"

She knows surprises aren't exactly his favorite thing, but it seemed to be the only way to make the occasion feel special and get some alone time.

"You didn't have to do anything special for me, Kim. And the party is this weekend" He mumbles, a blush creeping up his neck.

"I know. But I wanted to give you my birthday gift without others there," Kim says, taking a deep breath and twisting the handle. "Stay where you are and close your eyes."

"Do I have any choice?" He calls as she flits around the room, making sure all the blinds are down and remaining lights are dimmed, the room was clean, and all as it should be. She tiptoes back over to him, and grabs hand again to tug him closer to bed.

"Okay, open your eyes on three." She announces. He nods.

"1." He counts.

"2." She continues.

"3." They both say simultaneously and her nimble fingers untied the knot of the robe she is wearing.

He doesn't say anything. He just stands there, staring with mouth hanging open, and Kim twiddles her thumbs carefully.

She is wearing a matching set of black lacy underwear, complete with a little transparent babydoll and high heels (the whole getup sets her back a few handred of dollars, but the result is so worth it).

"You like it, right?" she finally asks, concerned, after nearly a full minute of silence.

"I... It's... You... Are... Great. And so-so sexy." He gives her a crooked smile. She grins back.

"Happy birthday, Jack." She murmurs, proud that her surprise is so well received.

He pulls her close, kissing deeply, making her heart thrum in the chest and her stomach do flips and her breathing quicken. A warm, shiny feeling seeps into her veins, coursing through them and into her lower regions. She wraps her arms around him, one hand tangling in his hair, the other sprawled across his back.

"How did you manage this all? Are Milton, Jerry and Rudy are on this?"

"Jack, we are alone in my house. My parents are at work and won't be here until much later. And I want to give you your birthday gift. Do you really want to talk about our friends right now?"

Jack growls, pulling her back into him, kissing her hard and cutting off her laughter. His hands are under her babydoll, ghosting up her stomach. She takes it off, pulling it over her head. He walks them to her bed and he sits down heavily with her in his lap. Jack's eyes take her in and she can see the desire in his gaze. His lips find her collar, trailing open mouthed kisses down her chest before coming to a stop between her breasts. He plays with the edges of the bra and cups her breasts (that look so much better with the underwire). His hand is on her again, cupping her and massaging her before taking a nipple between his fingers to pinch and roll and she groans at the feeling. Then his mouth is on her, sucking a nipple into his mouth.

"Off. I need this bra off." he mumbles and with quick hand movement, the bra snaps are undone and it falls down her arms.

He presses an open mouthed kiss to the edge of her right breast, hands going for the edge of the panties and slipping his fingers in. He seems to be distracted, spending time toying with her nipple, humming against her skin when she whines and pushes up into his mouth.

"I love your breasts. They fit you. And when I kiss you here enough, you blush all the way down..."

She is actually blown away. She may not be overly endowed and while she is not insecure about them, she does wonder sometimes if he'd prefer a larger chest (hello, Donna 'I have to have underwire and padding or they jiggle too much' Tobin). She only whimpers in response.

"Let me make you feel good," he says, quiet against her jawline when he gets there.

It sounds like a line, but Kim knows Jack: he always makes sure to make her feel good and she loves him for that.

Her panties are merely a suggestion at this point, shoved to the side and stretched out to make room for his large hand. They move to lie down on the bed and he pulls them down. He follows the panties down as he slides them off her legs, dropping kisses against her hips, thighs, the inside of her knee, the curve of her ankle, making sure not to snag them on heels. She makes to throw the shoes off only to be stopped by his ragged voice, "Leave them on."

She honestly clenches involuntarily at this and she is not sure if its because he has a thing for heels or because his voice is so low, dark and husky.

He follows her legs from the shoes up to her center and its all so good: his fingers, his lips, his tongue, his teeth. He finally ducks down and presses his mouth between her legs, lips open so his breath comes out heavy and warm. Kim squirms, knees kicking up and giving him more space to work with.

She sighs at the first touch of his tongue, shifting back slowly while her hips rise. Jack manages to get his palm under the curve of her ass for leverage and she peeks down along her body to see him looking back at her. She blushes, of course she does. Their physical relationship still feels very new to her and she is sometimes embarrassed by her own sensuality.

One hand holding her hips up, the other playing over her left thigh, Jack makes a low rumbling noise against her, _into_ her, and Kim can't breathe. It's almost too much, the way he can make her feel, but the loss of control is worth it. Kim couldn't for the life of her keep track of anything beyond one slick, fizzy _yes_ until he slides one finger inside her, the tip of his tongue pressed to her clit.

"Oh, God." The sensation rips through her and she drops back into bed, her hand on his shoulder and the other clutching the bedspread. His thumb rubs circles around her clit slowly, setting a rhythm before pulling away moments later. The loss of contact pulls a whimper from her lips and she can feel him smile around her nipple. His fingers replace his thumb, slipping through her lips to caress her folds, sending waves of arousal crashing through her.

The heel of his fingers inside and the way his tongue pushes into her clit and everything speeds up. She can feel the tension rising, urging her forward. His fingers crook inside of her as he moves and after a couple of strokes his fingers hit a spot that has her putting her hand in his hair to hold him close as she rocks faster.

"Jack, I…I-"

"Just let it go." His whispered words in her and a final stroke from his fingers set her off, silently gasping for air as the waves of her orgasm wash over her. His movements slowly come to a stop before pulling out of her. Her breathing slowly evens out as his hands caress her hips and she rocks into him again. The release from her orgasm was mind blowing, but it only served to make her want more.

Shen she finally can breath she looks at him, still fully closed. She sits up and pulls him for a kiss.

"Too many clothes." Kim says and pulls his shirt over his head and runs her hands down his chest mapping his contours. His body responds to her, muscle clenching and jumping, as his areolas pebble. A shot of arousal shoots through her and straight down to her core. She finds one if his nipples and teases her nails across the sensitive skin. The low groan that escapes his mouth is the most erotic thing that she has ever heard. She does it again.

His arms wrap around her as he moves to lay them down on the bed but her eyes widen and she stops him. He gives her a confused look.

"I probably should have asked before we both became naked from the waist up," his lips slip down to her chest again and her breath hitches, "but do you have a condom?"

He stops cold.

She can see his brain catching up with what she says, what she is implying and the awe in his eyes is overwhelming. "I mean, I started the pill, but the doctor says it takes one full cycle to..." she stops herself before she babbles some more gynecological facts.

 _"What? Oh... Shit!_ You sure?" At her nod his eyes close tightly and she can practically see the wheels turning in his head. "Wait, yes." He lifts his hips slightly, pressing his hard length into her and ripping a soft moan from her lips, as he reaches into his back pocket and pulls out a leather wallet.

"Jerry gave them to me as part of his birthday gift," he says, a familiar wrapper appears in his hand. "Never been so thankful for his one-track mind in my life."

Kim grabs the foil packet, biting her lip as she places it on the bedside table. She leans back, and lets her hands drift down to his pants, undoing his belt and pulling it out of the loops. She throws it somewhere behind her and it lands with a thud on the floor.

She licks and kisses his neck as her hands run down his chest, tracing the contours of each muscle. Her fingers dip into the waist of his jeans before she palms him firmly, massaging him through the material. Jack releases a barely contained breath, his hands gripping her hips tightly, and a wave of pride runs through her. She licks at his earlobe.

"You like that, Jack?" She can't help the giggle that slips from her lips when he groans loudly, bucking into her hand.

"Kiiim..." he says lowly.

She gets off him and helps him take off his jeans and underwear. She hands him the condom and watches as he quickly rips open the packet and, as she pulls back to give him a little room, rolls it on. This is it.

"You sure, Kim?" he asks again and she could kiss him for being so concerned about her even though he must be dying of want.

She nods and kisses him deeply to communicate all that she is not saying: she is sure, she always thought it'd be him anyway, he is her first crush, her first love, her first lover, _she loves him_.

They move to lie down again with him hovering above and she takes him in hand to guide him with one hand and the other holding his shoulder. He positions himself at her entrance and she is rubbing his head against her folds, gathering and spreading her wetness. He stops to look at her again and she knows.

She nods again and he starts to lower himself, the head of his cock slipping in easily before he stops. She is glad because he is already stretching her and she is clenching involuntarily.

It a slow go and with every inch she takes in the more Jack struggles to stay still. He slides one arm under her and rests his weight on that arm, his other gripping on her hip tighter and tighter with every second. His fingers on her flex.

It is a little uncomfortable, the stretching around him, but his obvious pleasure almost distracts her from it.

She stops him with a hand on his chest to give herself time to adjust and Jack's eyes pop open to look at her with wild, nearly black, eyes.

"Holy fuck, Kim. So tight, so hot, don't move..." he is panting, obviously struggling to breath properly and she tries to relax.

She can feel him start trembling from exertion of holding himself still and he whimpers, "Can't... hold..."

She barely nods, when Jack's hand bands around her tightly and he curls himself into her and that motion makes him slide in even farther and she freezes, breath stolen from her, because all that previous discomfort is nothing compared to the pain that flares through her. "Ahhhh..." she whimpers digging her fingers into his shoulders.

His head jerks up to look at her and he is a picture of pain and pleasure, apologetic and contrite.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry... Are you OK? Oh, Kim, please, I am sorry..." he says ans kisses her face, even as she is still recovering from the pain of the intrusion.

Slowly, it ebbs away until all that she feels is fullness and she can feel herself relax and she hears Jack's corresponding exhale of relief, "Okay, Kim?"

She nods and makes the experimental roll with her hips and he is cursing and clutching at her tightly.

The tightness ebbs slowly and her hips protest the angle they have been forced into. She shifts to reposition herself and gasps at the sensation the movement causes deep inside her.

"Kim? Are you OK?" His eyes, dark and intense, are trained on her, ready to do anything she asks.

"Fine. Good. Really good. Wow." She lets go of her death grip on his shoulder (there are crescent marks from her nails and at least one of them shows a little blood) and places her foot down on the bed for leverage as she starts gently rolling her hips.

Kim isn't naïve. She took health, she heard stories from girlfriends in high school, not to mention the fact that Jack is noticeably large. She expected discomfort would play a role in the loss of her virginity. And it was: painful and uncomfortable at first. What she didn't expect is how quickly the pleasure would take over.

Each new movement, each slow lift of her hips, sends another wave a pleasure coursing through her, urging her onward. His hands help her set a pace, the sounds of heavy breathing and meeting skin and moans filling the room. He follows her lead and keeps the same gentle rhythm and her hands wonder, one caressing his lower back, where she can feel his muscles undulate and the other moving to his face so that she can kiss him. She can feel her heartbeat as it tries to break free from her chest.

He is breathing hard and moves his mouth to gulp some air and she takes to opportunity to bite on his earlobe, receiving a deep groan and sharp thrust in return.

She wraps her legs around his waist, keeping him locked close to her as he moves slowly in and out. The pleasure, slow and smooth, spreads out through her limbs and out of her mouth in a low moan.

"I think... faster…Jack, god, please…" Her arms encircle round his back as he gradually speeds up, clinging to his sweat covered skin, chest to chest. His hands change the angle of her hips just enough to allow him in deeper and she can't think anymore. The fire has taken over her mind with the sole purpose of racing to the end. She lifts her hips to bring them together faster, the pace not yet fast enough to satisfy. He whispers her name into her skin as his hips snap against hers. She can feel another orgasm building and clenches around him experimentally.

"Kim…" She clenches again and is rewarded with his hand on her clit, rubbing furiously. She bites down on his shoulder to stifle her moans. His mouth is on her neck, sucking on her pulse point as he drives harder and harder into her, his strong legs and hips making every move so powerful, she slides up on the bed.

She can feel it, its right there within her grasp and when he pinches her clit as he bites down on her neck she flies over the edge, throwing her head back, whimpering and crying out at the feeling rushing over her. Through the ripples and haze of her orgasm she can feel his breathing pick up. A moment later his thrusts falter and he comes with a groan and a shudder.

They lay exhausted, still clutching at each other, their breathing mingling.

"You're the best birthday gift giver," Jack whispers before dipping to kiss her.


	18. Chapter 18

A/N: so I added some drama. Don't hate me. They both are pig stubborn and won't admit their feelings. So both act insecure and foolish.

* * *

Jack is happier than he's been in a long while. Things with Kim are perfect. She may not have said outright that she loves him, but he can feel the truth of it in every moment they spend together.

If there is one thing Jack is grumpy about, its how little time they have together. Between her internship, his job and the party that his parents are planning, Jack does not see Kim as much. Which is extra frustrating because there is so much more they can be doing alone. He's not gonna lie - he is kind of horny all the time now. If he thought that sealing the deal with Kim would relieve some of the tension then he is dead wrong. He knows now how it feels to be with Kim like that and the desire grips him almost all the time.

He also just misses talking and spending time with her. This is the fourth week of her internship and its keeping her busy. She unexpectedly was given additional responsibilities. Apparently the producers think that as the youngest on the team, Kim is best equipped to track the trending topics on the social media and Kim is working with Matt to set alerts to help her wade through the wilds of internet.

On one hand he is ecstatic that her summer job is going well: it essentially solidifies the idea that she would stay here and not go to Otai. On the other hand, she is always busy and he hears a lot about Matt (so helpful and smart). He is not exactly jealous of Matt, but he wishes she talked a little less of him and her work.

The day pf the party arrived and the weather is perfect and all the details are completed. His parents and Grandpa insisted that all of the family in the area is invited, which means that Kai is here. Things have never improved between Jack and Kai. They are at each others' throats whenever they are in the same room and they had fought a few times since the time Rudy has left the dojo to work for his uncle.

Kai is here and, maybe because his parents talked to him, but he is wisely avoiding talking to Jack other than the nod when they first came in.

Most of Jack's friends are here and, since he is on the basketball team, some of the jocks showed up as well. Of course the Wasabi gang is here too.

Kim comes up dressed in a black mini dress with high heels that he recognizes immediately and just like that he is turned on and ready to curse his own hormonal self. Between the heels and his imagination (does she have the same black matching underwear on?) he knows he is staring and she caught on to that. She smiles wickedly and then goes to put her present at the table, bending just so and _oh this girl will be the death of him._

He is distracted by more guests coming in and he loses track of Kim for a bit. Finally, he thinks all the guests arrived and he goes to search for his elusive girlfriend.

He does not find her but stumbles upon Grandpa and Kai talking quietly in the corner. He does not know what sets him off, but he sees that Kai has that unpleasant smile on his face and he just has to confront him before Kai says something to upset the old man.

"'Sup, Jack? I hear that your girl is going to Otai. Congratulations." Kai does not look even remotely pleased. It is understandable: he never got invited to Otai. This is thorny subject to him and Jack would not voluntarily mention it, because as much as he does not like his cousin, Jack is not mean.

"She got the offer, yes." Is all he says.

"I told Kai that you got your head straight when you realized she might be gone for a year and asked her out." Grandpa beams still proud of his own involvement in bringing Jack and Kim together.

"Yeah, the road trip to chase the blonde cheerleader. I hope its worth it. I mean all this effort and she is gone in the end of the summer." Kai says with that exact nasty smile that always sets Jack off.

"She has not decided yet whether she'd go." Once again he does not want to elaborate, but his good mood is disappearing quickly.

"Riiiight. Well, for your sake, I hope she stays although, truthfully, any ambitious person would take an opportunity. Unless, of course, something is holding her back here..." He trails off and the suggestions of all kind are hanging in the air.

Jack bristles and is ready to chew his cousin out, when his Grandpa says, "Ambition is good only if it goes hand in had with a noble goal. Ambition by itself is destructive. Kim is a smart, good, girl. She'll make a right choice."

Grandpa's implication is obvious and Kai's face twists into a frowning snarl. "Right. More fortune cookie bullshit. I'll just go."

He leaves them and Grandpa's face is weary and sad and Jack wants to drag Kai back and make him un-say the last part.

"Gramps, he did not meant it this way..." Jack starts, but his Grandpa stops him.

"Don't worry about me Jack. Kai has not said anything new. Go and enjoy yourself."

Jack is still unsure, but Grandpa shoos him off and Jack goes outside to find Kim and his friends. He sees Kai talking to Brett of all people and it seems like they are having some understanding. Jack shrugs it off and finds Kim in the circle with Jerry, Milton and Grace. If he is not mistaken, Jerry and Grace are about to have another of their fights and he steps in to distract them all.

Eventually, he manages to get Jerry alone and tells him to behave for one evening, because he really does not want a crying Grace, whom Kim would have to console. Call him selfish, but he'd like to have a nice party and maybe get some time alone with Kim.

He goes looking again and when he finds her, she is not alone. Brett is talking to her and they are both smiling. He does not want to read into it (he is not jealous), but they are awfully friendly and he still remembers that time when they all drifted apart and Kim dated this jock.

He marches to them and throes his hand over Kim's shoulder. "Hey, beautiful," he says and pecks her on the cheek.

"Oh, hi, Jack. Just talking to Brett," she answers the unspoken question.

Brett looks at them quizzically, "Are you...?" he trails off.

"Oh, yes, we are dating!" Kim gushes and Brett is now looking even more puzzled.

Brett seems to snap out of it and is once again displaying an easygoing nature "Oh, OK." He says to Jack, before turning to Kim "So we on for tomorrow?"

"Yeah, sure. What time you want to head out?"

"I'll pick you up about 6:30, ok?" Brett asks, preparing to leave.

"Cool, see you then." Kim responds cheerfully.

"Cool." Brett says with a smile to Kim, that smile dimming significantly when he looked back at Jack. "Happy birthday, Jack." As he turns, he gives a sort of half-hearted wave and smile to Kim.

Jack barely waits until Brett is out of earshot before turning to Kim.

"Wait, you're going out with him tomorrow?" Jack asks with a smile that doesn't reach his eyes.

"Brett is one of my friends and we are trying to reconnect this summer. He is on the team and I am on cheer squad, so…you know." Kim answers with a shrug in her usual cheerful manner.

"Trying to connect with you this summer?" Jack asks in that same voice and smile that wasn't a smile.

"Well, it kinda makes sense, him wanting to touch base because he thinks I am leaving." Kim responds with a small laugh.

"Uh huh. Just the two of you?" Jack asks, no longer bothering with the smile.

"Um, I guess. I kinda feel guilty for not keeping in touch with anyone from school this summer to be honest. It'll be good to catch up." Kim responds, oblivious to Jack's change in mood.

"I don't think he just wants to catch up." Jack says, all serious now. "He wants you Kim."

"What? Don't be ridiculous. We're like through, through. Besides, if he was really interested in me something would have happened when we went out that time," Kim explains, not realizing she is just making things worse. "We talked about it and we were cool just being friends. I swear, I am not interested in Brett in that way." Kim answers, finally catching on that Jack was getting the wrong idea.

"Were you going to tell me you were going out with him tomorrow?" Jack asks, still with that frown. "You planned this on my birthday."

"I would have told you, sure. Look, he just showed up and suggested we go out. What do you want me to do? Say no?" Kim responds with a little laugh.

"Yeah, I do. I don't want you going out alone with your ex-boyfriend." Jack answers, finally letting the anger show now.

"God, what is wrong with you? I just told you, he's like a friend and like a colleague to me." Kim answers, exasperated. "He's heard that I am leaving, so he just wants to hang out. What's wrong with that?"

"What's wrong with that is HE doesn't want to just hang out Kim. How can you not see that?" Jack is good and angry now.

"You're letting your jealousy get in the way…"

"I am NOT jealous!"

"…we are good friends, like colleagues and there is no reason for you to be this way." Kim responds, getting upset now.

"No reason? My girl is basically going on a date with her ex-boyfriend and you think there's no reason for me to be upset?" Jack asks, exasperated. "I want you to tell him you can't make it out tomorrow. I don't want you going out alone with him."

"Uh yeah, I wasn't asking for your permission Jack." Kim finally says, good and angry now. "I was actually thinking of inviting Grace and you out with us when you walked up, cause he surprised me here today to be honest and I wasn't really up to spending an evening out alone with him. But you know what? Maybe it's best that I go alone, cause you'll just be rude to him. What's the matter don't you trust me?"

"It's not you I don't trust Kim."

"Well you should trust me to be a good judge of the situation. If I say there's nothing going on that should be enough." Kim said in a huff. "You know what? I think I'll just go and take some air now," she turns to go leaving a fuming Jack staring after her with hard eyes.

 _Well, that went well._

Jack is still fuming, but part of him recalls the last time he was jealous and how it backfired on him. This time, though, he feels justified: Kim was making plans with her ex. At his birthday party no less. He is mad, but he notices that Kim avoids being alone with him and surrounds herself with her cheer squad friends.

He sighs again and wonders if universe is mad at him for something: first Kai, then Brett, then his tiff with Kim.

"Hey bro, what's going on?" Jerry asks him, looking around expectantly before looking back at Jack with a puzzled expression. "Where is Kim?

"I think she is mad at me." Jack offers and Milton looks at him sympathetically.

"Kim is mad at you, huh? Is it because of Brett?" he offers and Jack is not surprised. Milton apparently notices a lot more than others.

"It's ridiculous. I can't believe she's avoiding me, like I did something wrong. Hell, I was nice enough to Brett." Jack replies with a scowl.

"Jack, are you serious? First you say the guy is after Kim, then basically imply she's too stupid to pick that up. Then you more or less order her she can't see him. Come on, no wonder she's mad." Milton replies, exasperated.

"So, what? You think I should have just sit back and smile while my girl is making a date with her ex?" Jack asks in disbelief.

"Of course not! You could have handled it differently though." Milton says while looking at Jack like he is high or something. "Especially after the last time."

"It's different! She actually has a history with Brett and I know he still wants her." Jack exclaims.

"OK, aside from the fact that you don't actually know that, does she want him?" Milton says and Jack stops short.

He is an idiot. He let his cousin rile him up (now that he thinks about it, Brett was talking to Kai) and now he is fighting with Kim, instead of celebrating his birthday.

He goes looking for her (this entire party he does nothing else, it seems) and she is nowhere to be found. He panics for a second thinking she left the party still mad at him, when he runs into Grace, who says that Kim is in the basement helping Jack's mom find something.

When he gets there, he hears noises from the utility room and makes sure to walk quietly. He wants to surprise Kim, but whats greets him is an unpleasant sight: Kim and Brett are searching through boxes, chatting amiably.

He pauses when he hears that Kim is thanking Brett for helping her search, with Brett replying that he enjoys the company no matter their activity. And that he is happy to do any other kinds of activities with her. Now he is standing so close to Kim she has to look up at his face. Jack can't help the low growl that escapes him at that point, cause he just knows what is coming next.

"Hey what are you doing?" Kim asks in alarm, pulling back as Brett's head came down to hers.

"I'm trying to kiss you. Remember, we did that before. I thought you liked it." Brett answers with a smile in his voice, and leans his head again.

"Hey stop that!" Kim calls out with a nervous little laugh, as she takes a step back this time. "It's not funny. You know I have a boyfriend."

"Come on Kim, you can't be serious about him. Or he about you. You'll be gone in the end of the summer. If it's good time you are looking for, well, you can have that with me." Brett responds with a disgusting little smirk.

"What are you talking about?" Kim asks, exasperated. "Look, my and Jack's relationship is none of your business. Besides, we gave us a shot and it did not work."

"That's because of that meathead Jack. He always hang around like a bad smell. You'll have no life with him controlling everything you do."

"What?!" Kim says in utter confusion.

She actually stops moving and Brett takes advantage of as he reaches an arm out to yank Kim closer as he bends his head to kiss her again.

"That's it!" Kim yells, grabs his hand on her and twists around taking his hand with her and pushing it behind his back.

Jack has had enough. He steps in to find Bret panting red, but not fighting Kim. He knows that Kim's grip on Brett's wrist is painful and that Brett does not want to make it worse.

Both are surprised to see him and Kim lets go of Brett with a small shrug. Her smile at Jack dies quickly, no doubt because of how mad he looks.

Jack feels mad. Like, he can actually feel his lips curl into a snarl and he just wants to smash Brett's hand that touched Kim.

Brett chuckles shaking his hand out, "You deserve each other. I hope you can handle her. She is a wild cat. But all that sexy shit she does is not worth it, because she's got bad temper, that one."

That's it! That's all Jack needs and he hits Brett with a vicious blow to the jaw while roaring at him.

Brett crumbles to the ground like a sack of potatoes and Jack goes to him. He is not sure if he wants to kick or hit, but he does not get to find out: Kim steps in front of him with a fierce expression on her face.

"Jack, wait! Jack!" She tells him. "Don't do that!"

He tries to move around her, but she steps again to block him.

"Back off Jack!" Kim orders him.

What? What? Doesn't she get it? Why is she doing this?

The disbelief that Kim would jump in and actually face off with him over that idiot, quickly morphs into anger.

"You're defending him? After what he did?" Jack practically growls at Kim. "Get out of the way Kim."

"No! Leave him alone Jack, that's enough."

"Kim, step away!"

"You are an idiot! I don't want you to injure him any more. Its enough that I almost sprained his wrist and you probably broke his jaw. You want a complaint against you? Are you seriously going to throw your future away over some idiot with grabby hands? I took care of him!"

"You wouldn't be in this situation if you had listened to me first, instead of going off all 'I am an independent girl, who does not let guys order her around.' I was right about him. You should listen to me more."

"You were supposed to trust me!" Kim cries out, the hurt evident in her voice. "No matter what he wanted, the final decision is mine. You should have trusted me to be loyal to you, to do what's right. All of….this says you don't trust me. How can you l... like me if you don't trust me?" Kim ends in a small voice, her eyes fillng with tears.

"I do trust you! You mean so much to me. That's why I couldn't just sit back and do nothing, can't you see that?" Jack speaks urgently, holding her by the shoulders and looking into her eyes. "I lost it, okay? How could I not?"

"You saw I took care of him you know I can do it. I am a black belt. The only reason I didn't kick his ass was becuase I don't want too much trouble." Kim responds in exasperation.

"I know baby, I know. And I'm sorry for going all crazy on him. And for fighting you. Truly." Jack whispers softly, resting his forehead on hers. "Please forgive me…?"

"I want to Jack. I know that in your own weird way you were looking out for me." Kim says, looking in his eyes. "But I also know you did this cause you didn't trust me to handle the situation. Maybe even not to be loyal to you. I…I can't get past that." She finishes sadly.

"Kim I do trust you. This was because of me ok? I had a problem with Brett, not you." Jack tries to reason with her.

"I think I need some time Jack. I need to…I dunno, think I guess." Kim ends in a small voice, eyes downcast.


	19. Chapter 19

A/N: I honestly did not expect such strong reactions to the last chapter. I appreciate your reviews and hope you'll continue reading this story. Rest assured, I am a Kick shipper like you are. There probably would be another three-four chapters in this story. Let me know what you think.

* * *

After Kim left Jack in the basement with Brett just coming around, Jack can only stare at the place she's just occupied. It's only when Brett's moans get loud enough to pierce Jack's bubble of gloom that he turns to look at the footballer on the floor.

His lip curls in disgust only now he chooses not to engage the other boy. Brett slowly sits up and slurred at Jack, "why haven't you try out for the quarterback or a pitcher. You've got a mean right hook."

Jack merely raises his brows, "that's what you want to talk about?"

"Well we could hash out how I was grossly inappropriate with Kim. But I think Kim and you both showed me the errors of my ways. Can't decide if I was too stupid for thinking I can get anywhere with her, or believing that you are actually just having a bit of fun with her for the summer." Brett says, shaking his head.

"Why would you think that?"

"Well, I heard you guys got together, but also that she is leaving for that fancy Japanese school. So, I thought it's just a little summer thing. Then your cousin sort of confirmed it."

He is quiet for a while rubbing his jaw that already looks red and swollen. "Look, it pissed me off when she dumped me for you. Not even you, cause you didn't date, but like she wanted to be available because she held out hope for you. You know guys were like brutal on me for that. Girls too. I should have known it was a bad idea, but I thought I'll get under your skin or something. I really didn't mean for it escalate this badly."

"You are wrong. It's not just a summer thing. God, why would anyone think that? She and I have been friends and crushing on each other since junior year..." Jack is actually felling sick to his stomach. Why, indeed, anyone (him, specifically) think so little of or doubt Kim's affections? After everything that went down between them? After this summer? After her gift?

She told him once already to trust her. And he didn't. He just went off like an idiot who doesn't listen or is too stupid to understand...

He needs to find her and apologize until she forgives him.

If she forgives him.

He regrets that thought immediately and feels his stomach drop out at the thought that Kim might actually leave him and never look back.

 _Idiot. Jealous idiot_.

His mad at himself. So, so mad.

Brett coughs on the floor and Jack's attention is drawn back to him. The other boy catches Jack's expression and sort of scrambles backwards. "Look, dude, I am sorry. I'll apologize to Kim as well. I don't any more trouble..."

Jack wants to hurt Brett for everything he's done, but... he holds himself off.

He joins the party upstairs, hoping against hope that Kim is there. She isn't, but Kai is. Jack sees his rat like face that is carefully blank and approaches Kai with intent. His determination and anger make his steps purposeful and heavy. Kai's expression morphs from indifference to awareness to slight fear. By the time Jack reached kai, he's shifted into a fighting stance. Jack nearly relishes the coming fight. He'd beat Kai and if he gets beaten, it's nothing he does not deserve.

Jack's first strike is parried, but Jack is fast and mad, his anger driving him like a precise mean machine. They fight viciously, not holding back and their fight spills to the yard. The crowd around them shouts at them to stop and cheers at the same time. They are evenly matched and its not an easy going for either of them. At some point Jack distantly registers a flare of pain on his torso on the left and a glancing blow on the side of the face. All of it is on the periphery of his perception, he has a goal: he has an opponent that he has to take down and he does just that.

He wins. Kai is on the ground, Jack holding his one arm in both of his, one foot on Kai's shoulder. One more twist and he'd dislocate the shoulder.

Kai glares up at him, grudging acceptance on his face, and says quietly, "You win."

Kai's stops at that and Jack applies more pressure to his shoulder.

"Jesus... Fine, I am sorry." He half shouts, half hisses and Jack finally relents and let go of Kai.

Only now he sees that his parents, his aunt and uncle and his Grandpa are in the crowd looking at him with shock, dismay and, in case of his grandfather, blank unreadable expression.

He only regrets it for half a second.

His mom looks at him and he knows he is trouble. She calls him and Kai both to come with her, as his dad starts ushering all the guests out.

When he and Kai join their parents in the living room, it feels eerily like all other times he and his cousin fought. He doesn't want to discuss it or give explanation, so he stays quiet when his mom asks what prompted this brawl. To his surprise Kai starts talking.

"Aunt Helen, it's my fault."

Everyone, Jack included, stare at Kai in disbelief. That never happened before. Kai is always about weaseling out of trouble by blaming Jack.

"I taunted Jack and I told one of the guys to go after Kim. She laid him out good, if the bruise on his jaw is anything to go by." Kai continues and Jack can't believe it.

"Is that why she ran out of the house so quickly? Oh, Kai, how could you? I get that you are competing with Jack, but Kim? A girl?" Their Grandpa is genuinely upset and Jack can see that it's hurting Kai more than his beating has.

"You should check on her, Jack," his dad says to Jack.

He only nods.

"OK, we'll just be going home and taking this one with us." His aunt and uncle get up to leave and Kai goes with them. He is in a boaload of trouble, that Jack can guarantee.

"What did he say to you to get you so riled up, son?"

"Just that either she is not worth the effort or that she is not ambitious if she chooses to stay. But then she'd only stay because I'm holding her back. I dunno... He also told Brett that Kim and I have just a summer hookup. So, I kind of got mad at him..."

"I can understand that, but we told you not to fight outside the dojo unless you have to and specifically not to fight with Kai. I loathe to exert any punishment on your 18th birthday no less, but..."

"Wait, I think this particular fight falls under the 'have to category.' Kim was accosted by some guy because of Kai's meddling." Grandpa says and Jack spares him a grateful glance.

"Well, he still should be punished."

"Kim is mad at him. I think that's punishment enough." His mom interjects and Jack snaps his head towards her. "She wanted to take her gift with her, but I already put it in your room. She was almost crying and just ran. I assume you guys had a fight?"

Jack can only nod.

"What about?"

"I... got jealous..."

His mom is just shaking her head, sighing loudly, "Like father, like son. Well, this is your wheelhouse, darling." She gets up to leave and kisses Jack on his cheek. "This was an exciting birthday party and that Kai needed a lesson in manners."

After she leaves, Jack briefly explains to Dad and Grandpa what happened between him and Kim. They both cringe when he tells them the actual words exchanged and his dad is very somber by the end of it.

"There is no other way about it, Jack. You'll have to grovel and grovel and grovel some more. Maybe even do a grand gesture... I remember it worked on your Mom once."

"What did you do? Not to get her mad, but the grovelling part."

"Oh, you know, I sent flowers wherever she'd be until I run out of money. I was still a student, you see, poor like a church mouse. Then I sent her notes, emails and letters. She was tired of everyone telling her about me and my antics, so she agreed to talk to me."

"Kim doesn't like cut flowers... And I am not that great with words..."

"You'll think of something. She needs to see that you are sincere."

Jack's head is full of ideas about getting Kim to listen to him, because right now she is not answering her phone and ignores his messages. He heads to his room and stops short because it is full of gifts wrapped in bright paper. He completely forgot about the gifts. He shakes his head at this and then remembers: Kim got him a gift. Which she tried to take back.

He goes to the pile and finds a small box with an envelope with her handwriting. "To Jack. From Kim." She added a small heart over an I in her name. He opens the envelope and finds a piece of paper instead of a card.

Jack picks it up and scans it quickly. Then goes back and reads it again more carefully. And then does it again.

 _Oh, Kim..._

His hands are shaking and his breathing is uneven.

 _Stupid, jealous idiot..._

He goes downstairs with a new determination in his step. If Kim felt like this about him all this time, then one mistake on his part (OK, two biggish mistakes) won't erase these feelings. He has a chance and he'll take it.

When he arrives at Kim's house, it's her dad that opens the door.

"Jack, now is not a good time. She is upstairs, locked in her room and refuses to talk to us. I assume it's your fault?" Chuck is not exactly mad at him, but he also doesn't seem to like him right now.

Still, Jack insists and Chuck asks Kim through a closed door if she would see Jack. They get something thrown against the door in response. Chuck shrugs his shoulders. Somehow it manages to communicate both his seeming indifference and a deep understanding.

 _He can't leave like that. He can't._ The words of her letter are still fresh in his mind. He does not deserve, but she wanted him once and he won't let go so easily.

* * *

Jack never had a less comfortable nights' sleep than camped out on Kim's porch, but when her father comes out with coffee to shake him awake, he's sure it is the right choice.

Kim comes out to look at him with heavy and sleepy eyes some time later and they just stare at each other for a long time.

He is holding his breath the entire time afraid to spook her.

"How is your hand? And your ribs?" she finally asks.

Its not what he expected and his confusion must show because she follows up, "You punched Brett pretty hard. And I hear you and Kai had a nasty fight after I left. Grace texted me."

He suddenly remembers the last evening's events and lifts his hand to look at it. It is swollen a little and there is some bruising, but its generally fine.

"Its fine."

There is more silence ans they never have been this awkward before. He feels all the apologies crowding his tongue, but what he actually says is, "I read your letter."

She startles and looks down for a moment. "Your mom put the presents away. I did not have time to take it with me."

He hears the unspoken _'I did not want you to read it.'_

"Kim, please, I am an idiot. I know that. Oh god, don't I know it. Brett thought that we had a bit of summer fun, and I told him that he was an idiot to think that... But... I... sort of did the same..."

"Why did you fight with Kai?"

"He told Brett to hit on you. And he is a jerk to everyone, including Grandpa."

"Why would he do that?"

"I don't know... To get me mad, get me jealous, get under my skin. And he succeeded..."

Kim sighs and twists her hands around the hem of her robe sleeves.

"I talked to my mom last night. She told me I was being incredibly inconsiderate because I was keeping you in suspense over my decision on Otai. She thinks it was selfish of me to start anything with you while there was a chance that I would go to Japan. And then the internship. I... she said I basically wanted to have my cake and eat it too, only it was your heart that was in the balance and not just my future and ambitions. I... I don't know.. Was I selfish? And inconsiderate? And blind to your feelings? Am I so bad? I didn't mean to..."

He makes a noise of disagreement and clenches his hands in fists, but stops realizing now that it actually hurts. He reaches for her hand with his good one, "You are none of those things. You are my best friend and an amazing girlfriend. You should consider your future and ambition. Just, you know, include us into that equation."

He stops and is startled when Kim picks up his right hand to inspect it.

He can't move or breathe or think. Her delicate hand with smooth skin is warm on him (it got colder at night) and he shivers. She looks up at him and he is lost, lost completely, because her eyes are huge and luminous and gorgeous and she looks at him with tenderness and... and...

Resting his forehead on hers, both of them breathing unevenly, Jack whispers "I'm sorry baby, truly sorry. I miss you. Please don't be angry with me anymore."

She makes a choking little noise and then, "Will you at least admit that you were jealous unnecessarily?"

"Fine. I was jealous OK? I hated seeing that stupid jock around you. I hated seeing how friendly and carefree you were with him. I hated knowing he was your first boyfriend. I hated that the two of you have a history together that we never will. I hated that you had the whole football/cheerleader thing in common. But most of all I hated KNOWING he wanted you, that he might know you well enough to push the right buttons and somehow get you. And I really did just want to make sure you were OK. I wasn't kidding when I said I could see that he wanted you. I saw him looking at you and it was the same as when I look at you." Jack admits in one rush.

Kim sighs and looks at Jack with a 'what am I gonna do with you' look. "It doesn't matter who wants me or who I knew first. I... I... I love YOU. And the only person who can change my mind is me. As for Brett making a move, I handled it. You have absolutely nothing to be jealous of." She ends softly before kissing his hand on the bruised knuckles gently.

"And I love you. I have loved you for a long time now. I don't think I know how not to be in love with you."


	20. Chapter 20

Kim never thought the phrase 'floating on cloud nine' was anything other than an poetic embellishment. Yet, here she is - floating on cloud nine. After her surprise celebration of Jack's birthday and their new intimacy, everything is sugar sweet and rainbow colors. Jack is unbearably nice and solicitous and either beams at her with a dopey smile or scorches with dark, intense, and passionate looks.

She is no better. She wants to be close to him at all times and if it wasn't for a surprising amount of soreness, she would. As it is, he draws her a bath and sits with her in the bathroom making them both hot and bothered when he offers to wash her up. This ends up in another blow job for him, because Kim seriously cannot take another go, even with just hands and lips. (Jack is smug like a peacock and sorry for all the trouble (he really isn't, because she is not.))

The rest of the week is spent being busy at the station and sneaking in some alone time with Jack. He tests the structural integrity of the branches outside her window one more time and, while she is happy to see him, she actually is freaking out every time he climbs in, because she does not think that poor tree will hold out much longer.

She is still busy with a new project tracking social media for a new segment for the local news. It's a lot more boring than she expected. She does not know people whose post get re-tweets or likes and it makes this particular project a bit pointless to her. But, still, that's her job for the summer and she just buckles down and does it.

The city ordinance bit actually was a headline news and some of what she wrote was cited verbatim. On the website, the editor credited her as one of the contributors and she is supremely happy about it. She likes the journalism more and more, even if the sports part of it is a slow going. All she was able to do for a sports desk, is run up the stats of the high school teams' performances on the county level and give short bios on players to look out for.

It was finally a weekend of Jack's party and she is nervous about her gift. She debated for weeks until she finally scrounged up her courage to go with her first choice. She found it while on her trip with Dad, when Jack already left. They are three silver pendants/charms that he can add to the necklace or a key chain. She got them in Portland and they are Native American symbols for crossing path (meeting), cactus flower (courtship), and sun (happiness). Together they mean that their meeting led to a relationship and happiness. Its cheesy, she knows. But somehow she kept coming back to them at the museum store and decided that if she dwell on them so much, then she should get them.

Then there is her card, which is not the card at all. In a fit of completely insane bravery she put her letter to him that she wrote when he was going to go to Otai. She took it back then, but now... Now she thinks it would mean a lot more to him. She re-read and was kind of embarrassed by what her fifteen year old self wrote, but it was genuine and sincere, so she puts it in the envelope and attaches it to the box with charms.

* * *

September 24, 2012

Dear (crossed out) Jack:

God, it is an awful way to start a letter. Like those Dear John letters, right? Actually, I am not sure you know. Its when a guy is away and...

You know what, never mind.

I will miss you. A lot. Despite your cocky attitude, you became my closest friend and it would be hard when you are gone. Of course, Otai sounds cool and you'd be great at karate (not that you are not now). I guess with your grandfather being the Grand Master, it is practically inevitable...

If you are concerned about Jerry and Milton, don't worry. They are doing better at parrying and I'll keep an eye on them. I am not sure I can quite replace you, but I am a black belt and have some skills.

That's actually not what I wanted to write to you about.

God, this is so hard to say (even if it on paper and not face-to-face).

I don't want you to go. There, I said it. I am officially a horrible and selfish friend. So don't listen to me and go carpe diem, so to speak.

But I wish you and I had more time together. I always felt like there is something between us, something more than being friends. I can't quite describe it, but I feel it when we are together, near each other. It's like this energy beam that connects us (don't tell Milton or he will try to explain the science of it to me). Wow, that sounds so cheesy. And mushy. And I am not mushy, I swear.

But I always look forward to the day because I will see you. And I miss you when I do not. I like talking to you and sometimes when we touch or stand close I feel my heart speed up.

You long ago said I had a crush on you.

Well, its true. I do.

Now, that I said, I am glad you are reading this on the plane. I don't think I can face you after this confession.

Its been more than a year since I met you and it should have faded, and yet, here I am. Writing to my friend and crush, because he is leaving.

Go to Otai. Become a great martial artist and come back. Perhaps, when you are back (and if you feel the same) we can finally get the time we need.

Yours,

Kim

* * *

She is one of the first to arrive at the party and her outfit is a deliberate choice on her part. The dress is short and black and she is wearing those heels from the time she surprised him. She hopes he remembers them. She also repeated her underwear set wishing that they might get some time with each other.

She hardly gets to talk to him, but she knows he recognized the shoes and his smoldering looks are burning her from afar. Oh, this is going to be great.

Unfortunately, it goes to hell pretty quickly. Jack is jealous. And stroppy. And unreasonable. And her heart literally breaks when he shouts how she should listen to him and do as he says. Of all the stupid things he says, its this one that sticks in her craw. She leaves him in a huff, but she hopes he comes to his senses before the party is over.

She may feel be a teensy bit guilty because it does look kind of bad that she is meeting Brett tomorrow. But, in her defense, he surprised her and she planned to bring others with her.

The day does not improve. Brett corners her in the basement and says all of those terrible things and really, what did he expect exactly? She twists his arm behind him, ready to sprain it if necessary, but then Jack shows up. And everything goes from bad to horrific in less than a minute.

She can see the moment Jack realizes he said too much and his face is so hurt and sincere, but she really cannot stay there anymore (her stupid heart is beating so hard she is afraid she might die). She can feel the sobs building up and tears rising in her eyes... and she has to leave. Now.

She came to the party with her stupid gift and even stupider letter, thinking that this would be the night she tells him she loves him. Instead, Jack is jealous, Brett is grabby, she is called dumb and is told to listen to her man, who knows better.

She runs upstairs unable to keep her tears at bay and is frantically searching for her gift (stupid and cheesy) and her letter (stupid and embarrassing). Only they are not where she left them and she books it out of Jack's house without them before he catches up to her.

Its only when she is at her house that she lets the tears fall and by the time she reaches her room her face is all wet and she is holding the sobs by sheer force of will.

Her parents leave her alone, perhaps realizing that she just needs some time to be by herself.

Later, her dad comes up to tell her that Jack is here, but she can't see him right now. She is not sure there is anything they can say to each right now that would help.

Her tears dried out and her eyes feel crusty when she get a text message from Grace. Her friend is cryptic, but has sent her some links. She checks them out and gasps. There are videos: on Youtube, Twitter and Instagram. Of Jack. Fighting with Kai. The kind of dirty, all the illegal moves permitted, fight. Neither of them holds back and while the videos are shaky, she can see that both Kai and Jack land serious blows on one another. Her heart is in her throat when she sees a kick to Jack's side and another blow to his head. He seems unfazed and continues to fight with precision and power that she came to know well. Kai is vicious and plays dirty, but he ultimately loses and Jack stand above him with Kai's arm stretched and twisted. She can't quite hear what they say to each other, but Jack lets his cousin go and she can finally breathe.

 _That idiot._

What if Kai hurt him? Cold sweat covers her forehead and she is now mad at him for putting himself in danger.

She loves an idiot. Correction, a hot headed, heroic and jealous idiot.

She does not read the comments. She does not think she wants to know.

She only replies to Grace to ask her if Jack seemed fine after the fight. He was.

Her mother finally has enough of her moping and bangs on the door until Kim opens it.

If she thought her mom would comfort her, she is very much mistaken. Her mom basically tells her to stop being a jerk and tell Jack once and for all whether she is going to Otai or not. Her mom does not hide the fact that she wants Kim to stay, but she also tells her that Kim should not lead on a decent boy (hah, if mom knew that Jack fought his own cousin and that it was filmed and posted on Youtube), because she, Elizabeth May Clark nee Crawford, did not raise a common flirt or a tease (in moments like this, when her mom's Southern roots showed, Kim and her dad would call mom Ella May and demand she take them to Tara.)

All jokes aside, her mom's words catch Kim by surprise. Is she selfish and inconsiderate? Does she lead on Jack since she is dangling her Otai decision over them? Is is fare to him?

She sleeps poorly and goes back and forth over their entire summer so far analyzing their interactions.

In the morning, she is groggy and has a bad headache. When she is downstairs its her dad that greets her. He wants to know what exactly happened yesterday that she was in tears and Jack was at their door ready to climb the walls (she actually blushes and avert her eyes at that, because, really, her dad cannot know about the tree climbing, right?).

She tells him a sanitized version of the argument over an ex and overall jealousy. She tries to spin it as she sees it: Jack does not trust her and therefore cannot love her. Only her dad is quiet and pensive and then tells her that she is wrong to judge Jack so harshly. Has she told him she loves him? Does Jack know with absolute certainty that he has her heart and loyalty? Can she claim that if she is leaving him for Otai? Is it so preposterous to think that Jack is insecure and is lashing out? Isn't Brett her ex? Her first boyfriend, in fact? Wouldn't she herself be bothered if Jack made plans with one of his exes?

When Kim is quiet and processing all that her parents told her, her tells her to go outside.

Apparently, Jack slept on the porch all night.

She absolutely _does not_ feel thrilled at this gesture (she does).

* * *

He gets up quickly when she opened the door and she is staring at him. He is moving stiffly, no doubt because the porch is hard, his hair is messy and his eyes are somber and searching.

She can't fight it any longer. She can't go to Otai. She'd be leaving her heart here. She loves him, jealous warts and all.

He apologizes and he is surprisingly eloquent. She can see that he is truly sorry and she finally tells him what has been the truth for a long time.

She loves him.

And he loves her back.

When they kiss it's slow and gentle and he tastes like coffee that her dad gave him (bitter and burned) and she is wearing her fuzzy robe and slippers, but the morning sun is shining on them and all is good.

A/N: There will be the proper 'reunion' sometime soon. And I will have Jack's letter here as well. I hope Kim's letter does not sound too grown-up. Let me know.


	21. Chapter 21

Kim sends him back home, because 'Jack you parents are probably worried and will ground you.' She mentions something about the fight being on Youtube and he kind of balks at that. He really did not want that. He hopes that whoever posted it, did not name names and that it does not get much attention. He suspects his parents would be less lenient if their name is bandied about because of the fight.

He is in luck. No names, just a tag 'the REAL fight between black belts.' The video is shaky and the only way to recognize either him or Kai is to know both of them personally. The video has a few hundred views, but has not gone viral.

There are tons of messages on his phone and social media and he ignores them all, because he needs to shower and try to get some sleep, because seriously that porch is not comfortable. He also is dying to see Kim's gift. He ran out yesterday after just reading her letter and never even opened the box.

When he does open the box he actually is not sure what he is looking at other than just charms. There is a note attached to each describing the symbol and the meaning. Jack puts it all together and... He won't lie: he gets a little choked up. Kim is so thoughtful and after everything she's given him already this summer; she really did not have to get him another gift, but this one hits him somehow low in the belly. She bought it in Portland. She felt like this already.

He is acutely aware that he does not deserve her.

His parents and Grandpa want to know if he got Kim to forgive him and at his quiet smile and nod, they just smile back. His mom says offhandedly that she'd start making plans for a wedding since Kim is obviously the One. She laughs at his shocked expression and goes on to tease him about talking to Elizabeth, Kim's mom, on whether there is preference as to where to hold the reception.

There is only one more thing he needs to do before his nap.

* * *

Later that night in a restaurant at the Seaford Tower, Jack watches Kim across the table, her mostly bare shoulders looking creamy and delicate in soft blue lighting, the lines of her face distorted by the flicker of the candle between them. Outside the window, the streets of Seaford are lit like night sky. There's a murmur of conversations of other patrons and the distant tinkering of music, and Jack hopes that Kim finds all of this romantic (it is also where they had their dance at the Royal Reception of Hakhmakhistan). And it feels romantic, it really does...

She's wearing a slinky navy-blue dress and strappy heels (not black, but he apparently has a thing for heels anyway) and a surprising for her red lipstick and her hair as all wavy and big... Jack's mouth actually dropped open when she came down earlier that night and twirled for him, and like a total goof he kissed her hand while never taking his eyes from hers _._

It _is_ romantic.

And even though they've shared dinners together a lot of nights this summer, it feels very much like a Date with a capital D. Because they said those precious words (only eight letter, but oh so important) and because they had a huge fight, but there is something bubbling between them equal part affection and the desire to rip off each others' clothes.

As the waiter removes their empty plates, Jack uses the interruption to take a steadying sip of soda before resuming their conversation.

"You're kidding." Kim says with laughter in her eyes.

"No," Jack chuckles, head shaking in amusement. "Jerry and I were tied up to two chairs with our backs to each other and Leona was going to marry Bobby. And then Jerry had to pretend to be a bride."

"And you helped him into a dress? Is that why you guys have been so close?" She rests her elbows on the edge of the table, propping her head in her hands. "I can see that. Traumatic experience brings the two people together. That's why you and Jerry are having a bromance..."

"Hey. I object to that."

"Why? Sounds to me like you do everything guys in bromance would do together: go to the mall and hang out in sports stores and apparently help each other into wedding dresses... Oooh oooh!" She bounces in her seat, "Does Jerry brush your hair?"

Jack tosses his linen napkin onto the table in mock indignation. "No, you take that back."

"It's okay, Jack. Your secret is safe with me." She is hardly keeping her laughter back.

"Good." Jack pauses from rolling his glass between finger and thumb. "Otherwise he'd try to fight me and I would have to beat him up. I think I've done enough of that for this weekend."

Her face turns serious and a little sad, "You sure you are not in trouble?"

Jack can't help but feel a swell of emotion at that: somehow Kim blames herself for the fighting. Really, how can she? It was all him, Brett and Kai.

His eyes soften as he leans closer to her across the table. "How do you do it?"

She frowns. "How do I do what?"

"You know, let go of the anger at me and Brett. I mean I was such an ass to you..."

"I don't know. Because I have to, I guess." She sighs. "Because sometimes it takes more energy to be angry and negative and depressed and what's the point in that?"

Jack smiles, hesitates a little before he reaches across the table to touch her hand. His pulse quickens at their touch (she turned him into a freaking poet), the way it always does, and they both stare at the play of their interlinked hands side to side as the waiters hustle a path back and forth beside them.

It's absolutely, one hundred percent romantic. There's just no denying it now.

Jack coughs lightly, seeming to gather himself. "Did I tell you recently how amazing you are?"

She swallows hard and nods. "Yes, this morning."

"Well, I'll say it again. You are amazing."

"You are very charming."

His fingers tighten around hers for just a second. "I'm being serious, Kim."

He looks at her, really looks at her, and feels all this love and desire and just awe. It must be showing in his face, because Kim shifts backwards from the force of it, quietly muttering, "I know," before she reaches out to pat the sleeve of a passing waiter. "Check please?"

Jack presses forward in his seat, eyes flitting from hers, down to her lips and back again. Kim matches his expression, silently watching, waiting, hoping, and eventually Jack whispers a low and unwavering, "Want to get out of here?"

"That's why I asked for the check."

His elbow hits the table with a _thunk_ and he presses his mouth hard against his clenched fist to bite back a growl and she knows she's testing the limits of his control. " _Jesus_ Kim. I don't think... I feel like…I'm not sure you know what you do to me."

Her pulse flutters madly, mixing with the heady buzz of adrenaline beneath her skin. "You could show me."

"I want to, but we are in public..."

"Then let's get out of here."

Fifteen minutes later, he is pulling Kim inside their dojo (a little less romantic, but with their parents at home, this should do) her hair disheveled and her lips kiss-bitten. They stumble upon a young couple making out in the bench in front of th dojo. They spring back from each other and Kim waves her hand, nodding and smiling as awkwardly as strangers do, and Jack ushers Kim close against his chest. She gropes for his hand and takes it just as she looks up at him, and he is shivering with need as they take awkward steps inside.

Kim has a pensive look for a brief moment, but it's replaced with a hooded, dark look the minute Jack tugs her futher inside, thrusting her body against the lockers at the back of the room with a force that has her gasping for breath.

Their lips meet just as frantically as they did in the car when Jack kissed away her lipstick with hungry kisses that are a little forceful. He'd worry that he scared her, but she moans into his mouth as his hands trail up and under her dress, his fingertips grazing her thighs in soft patterns here and there before he fists the hem and tears his mouth way.

"Lift up your arms."

She's a little dazed by his kisses and confused by his request and the way he muttered it almost harshly against her mouth but she complies, shivering as her heated skin meets the cold metal door chilled by the air conditioning. Jack peels the dress over her head, dropping it to the floor as though he's forgotten it exists; his mouth too busy tracing the arch of her neck with kisses and wet flicks of his tongue. Kim fists his hair to hold him close, and he loves how breathy she sounds when he kisses her skin. She pulls his head harder, but Jack growls and takes a step back, his fingers attacking the buttons on his dress-shirt as he watches her slouch breathlessly against the door.

"Take off your panties."

It seems that Kim's too lost, too turned on to do anything but listen, to follow his demands, and she hooks her fingers into the lacy edge of her panties, shimmying them down her legs and kicking them away with an impatient little flick when they get caught around her ankle. Jack yanks off his shirt but pauses in unbuckling his belt to touch her again, trail his fingers down her sternum to the front clasp of her bra.

"I wore it on purpose." She breathes and he twitches inside his briefs.

She wore it just for him.

Kim swallows hard as he unclasps with forefinger and thumb, and the way they cant stop looking at each other as he peels away the cups and the air grazes and tightens her nipples. She shivers at the delicate way he palms the weight of one breast, caressing the swell, teasing the hardened peak with every sweep and brush of his thumb.

Jack mouths kisses against her cheek, peppering a path to her ear before whispering hungrily, "I want to show you everything."

"Yes," Kim moans, fumbling desperately with his belt and zipper now. "Show me."

She trembles as his palm slides down her stomach and gasps when his fingers sweep softly between her thighs. She nods rapidly at a question he didn't ask, and he presses a little harder, a little deeper in response, and Kim writhes senselessly against his hand, her own hands clutching at nothing but air. Her head rolls back against the door with a _thunk_.

As if he knows her legs are about to give out, Jack lifts and carries her to the mats, and Kim stretches out languidly, dazedly, sinking into the familiar mats that Jack is kind of expecting that the next time he sees these mats, he'd have hard time not imagining her like she is now. He stares at her while he undresses and if he flexes his muscle, its only because Kim is very fond of them: the ridges of the abs, the dip of his hipbones and the muscles of his thighs. He is hard already and its only gets worse when Kim reaches between her legs, fingers desperate to finish what he started.

"Fuck, _Kim_ ," he says, sounding wrecked, the words ripped from him as he watches her shift and squirm against her own hand and he needs it, he's desperate for it.

"Jack, touch me, now. Right now."

 _Oh, yes._

He practically drops to his knees and makes his way from the delicate ankles to the top of her thighs, which part eagerly, and he finally put his mouth on her and her sigh is a long and melodious _Jaaaack,_ which makes him feel both fuzzy and horny.

He knows by now what she likes and he does just that, knowing that if she climaxed she'd be more relaxed and it would be easier for her for when they actually have sex. If he were so inclined (and in general he is) he'd be very smug about his size, but it makes it more uncomfortable for Kim, so he isn't. He is determined to make it good for her and he missed her and was worried sick that he'd never have the chance to see her like this and it all makes him very determined and thirsty. It's working, as Kim rolls her head and pushes back at him and drops her hand on his head to keep him _right there, Jack, more Jack,_ and he loves how she stops being so shy and becomes vocal when she is turned on.

He hums his pleasure throatily and the vibration must feel good to her because she starts trembling and her breathing is stuttered and he knows what to do. He curls his finger in her and sucks hard right on her clit adding a little bite and she clamps on his fingers, her hand twisting and tangling in his hair. He keeps at it through the throb and wave of her orgasm, until she pushes weakly at his head.

When he finally pulls away, he growls at the sound of her whispered "Jack" and it's barely an intake of breath before he's rolling on a condom, tugging her thighs and entering her hard.

They both cry out at the sensation and Kim wraps herself around him, and then they are groaning in relief as their tongues finally meet in a wet messy caress. With each desperate inhale she makes these breathless throaty whimpers that has him grinding against her pelvis, eager and without finesse.

She whimpers into his kiss and he pulls back, "too hard?"

He is holding himself back by the skin of his teeth, because she is so hot and tight around him and he wants to die like this, but he also needs to move. Like now.

"Don't stop, Jack. Please more, harder."

 _Well, fuck, in that case..._

He dives right back in, fucking her through the mats and kissing her at the same time and there isn't a millimeter between them and he seriously won't last long. Not if she keeps making these noises, or clenching around him, or moving her pelvis to meet his strokes.

They slide a little on the mats and Jack lets out a near whimper of frustration and moves one hand under her and around her shoulder to hold her in place. Somehow it changed the angle and he feels himself going deeper with each move and Kim's mouth falls open and her head lolls a little to the side. He is so close right now he just need her to come with him.

He is grunting and groaning into her neck, mouthing wet kisses against the flutter of her pulse, cursing and pleading with her.

Barely lit by the threads of moonlight playing shadows across their skin, the room fills with the smell of sweat as they move in a rhythm desperate for release, and when Jack growls, " _Fuck_ , Kim, come for me," she does, clenching around him instantly, drawing out his climax as he shudders and whispers _Kim_ above her, against her, inside her until he feels like they are one _._

They collapse back against the mats, sweat-slicked and satiated, muscles trembling, their beaten breaths the only sounds along with the whir of the air-conditioner.

He is a dead weight on her and at some point she kind of whispers, "can't breath," which makes him finally roll off her taking her with him.

She sighs contentedly when he sweeps the hair from her face and dusts it with kisses. It's only then in the quiet dark of their dojo, as he brushes her hair off and she catches his hand with her, weaving their fingers tightly, whispering _"Jack"_ like it's coming from the deepest part of her, that Jack knows, he knows, that she'd be staying here with him.

Because, just as he once decided that Otai would cost him too much, so did Kim.


	22. Chapter 22

A/N: I am apparently I incapable of writing anything but fluff and smut for this Kick.

The next week at the station is surreal to Kim. It starts relatively OK, with her running for coffee, making copies and making the usual reports. Her other projects - monitoring the social media - is just a simple summary of current memes and fueds, so Kim does it almost automatically now. It rarely anything used in the news and she thinks it has been made up to keep her busy. Then comes a request from the sports desk: they want her to handle their social media accounts for a day, because the sportscaster is out of the office sick.

Kim is jittery all day, but she thinks she handles it well. It is different from using your personal account on Twitter, where you can just type the momentary thoughts and impressions and post it, knowing that only few of your friends and family would see it. Right now, she fidgets with text again and again, making sure it is grammatically correct and does not sound 'twee.' There are multiple news from various sports events and it stretches a little of her own knowledge: there is football (the soccer for Americans), there is cycling (Tour de France), there is women's golf (in the U.S., but open to athletes from other countries), swimming and volleyball (both international events). She runs the searches on all these events, sports and actual athletes, as she is trying to keep the feed on-going. Kim tries to add a bit of the everything there: stats, forecasts, fun tidbits about either sport itself or athletes. She never thought that being on social media could be exhausting, but now that it is her job she finds that it is.

The crazy day is over and she goes home feeling most accomplished. Her wrists are sore a little from all the typing, but it is worth it. She also realized that she needs to learn more about sports, other than the ones made available at school.

She is already home, when her mom wants to discuss her upcoming birthday party. How big does she want it to be? Where does she want to celebrate it? Who does she want invite? And so on and so forth...

Its only now that Kim realizes that her birthday is only two weeks away and she is a little startled that almost two months of the summer are over. It feels like only a few days ago she was at the end of the school party. And yet, so much has happened, so many things and emotions, that it seems like the longest summer yet.

She does not fret the end of it anymore. She decided that she'll stay. She wants to be with Jack, wants to stay close to home. She would like to explore the journalism as a possible career, but if it doesn't work out - she is not worried. Somehow being happy makes everything possible and within reach. Her internship will be over next week and then she can respond to Otai.

She also had met with Brett, with Jack present of course, and the other boy had apologized profusely. It was pretty obvious that he was nervous around Jack, who kept his heavy and stern look on Brett at all times. His bruised jaw was purple and red in one spot with fainter blue and yellow on outer edges. Jack must have hit him real hard. It was understandable that Brett would be weary of the irate black belt. When Jack stepped out to the bathroom, Brett quickly asked Kim to keep this hushed up from the coach and the school, because 'Kim, I'd lose the spot on the team, and I want to continue playing in college, please.' Kim just wanted this episode to be over and agreed to keep it quiet.

Then there was a meeting with Kai...

Jack's grandfather, who Kim came to like a lot, practically dragged Kai to Kim's house to make his apologies. It seemed that Kai himself was ashamed of his actions, especially the part of sending Brett after Kim. In his own words, Kai only wanted to taunt Jack, but he did not expect Brett to actually try anything physical. The strangest part of this particular conversation was when Kai congratulated Kim on the Otai offer, looking at her with respect that she has not seen before. Jack later told her that Kai has been severely disappointed that first Jack, and then Kim, got offers. Apparently, Kai was re-evaluating his choice of sensei.

The next day after she managed the social media, the editor and the producer of the sports desk called Kim in. She nearly fainted from anxiety and apprehension. Did she do something wrong? Was there a mistake that she has missed? Did she offend anyone?

When she enters the producer's office, she is surprised to see the correspondent there as well.

"Ah, Kim. Come in, come in," the producer says smiling and Kim's heart slows down a bit. They are not mad yet.

"Hi."

"I just wanted to tell you that we have been impressed with you and your coverage of so many events yesterday. Usually, the social media of our sports desk does not get much attention, but you have been churning out posts whole day with all of those event that we actually got some responses and comments on that."

"Positive comments?"

"Well, yeah. Some of our viewers liked the soccer championship coverage and everyone liked the volleyball competition info." Kim is not surprised. Soccer has been popular since the last World Cup and volleyball championship in Brazil (especially the beach volleyball) was fun to watch.

"I am glad. I was kind of freaking out whole day that I'll do something wrong."

"No, no worries. In fact, we'd like for you to do this again, until your internship is over." She must have looked incredulous at that, because the sportscaster just huffed.

"I am tool old to properly use this social media stuff. And I get carpel tunnel issues if I type for too long. You can do it faster and better. Of course, you need to learn more about sports and maybe mention coaches and some history to drum up drama, but you've got the knack for finding interesting bits..."

Oh, oh, this... is... oh...

* * *

Jack picks her in the evening and she is smiling at him from ear to ear.

"What?" his answering smile is already there.

"Just happy to see you," she says and then adds. "I also finally get to do the sports journalism."

"How? What?"

"Remember how I did the Twitter and Facebook for the sports desk yesterday? Well, they want me to do it for the rest of my internship. No more just coffee runs for me."

She says triumphantly and Jack's joy and pride at this news propel her to kiss him right then and there.

Right now, everything between her and Jack is perfect. Somehow the three words exchanged between them settled their nerves and the only danger and excitement that comes their way is the alone time that they try to sneak in.

* * *

Kim has been touching him non-stop since he picked her up and he knows that she missed him just as much as he missed her. He's been thinking of places they can spent some time alone, but right now there are no options.

They end up having and casual dinner of pizza and an ice cream afterwards. Kim is chattering excitedly about her social media and how she has to learn about different sports and history and coaches... her enthusiasm is infectious and Jack just smiles at her. She is glowing and every now and then she'd hold his hand or nudge him under the table.

He wants her to be like this always.

Jack is driving her home and Kim quietly tells him to pull over on the quiet street near park. She does not have to elaborate: Jack gets it and parks the car.

By unspoken agreement they move to the back seat and Kim practically shoves him into the backseat and his head thuds against the far window as he stumbles in, but it barely registers. He doesn't really fit in this kind of confined space, but he finds a way to make it work so she can close the door behind them. She's in his lap less than a second later, straddling his thighs so her dress rides up and he can see the silky shadow of her panties. He clutches at her hip with one hand and snakes the other through her hair to pull her down to his mouth again. She rocks against his erection with the kind of single-minded focus and determination that she usually reserves for sparring matches, and he seriously cannot believe that this is the same Kim who still blushes at the hint of their 'alone time.' She is in his arms, tugging at his hair and digging her nails into his shoulder like she's going to ride him until he can't walk straight for a week.

She pulls back, flinging her hair tie over her shoulder and plucking at the hem of his shirt. Her hair falls in a golden curtain around her face, but he can see her biting her lip as she works, like this is the most important thing she's ever done. Her hips are still moving, and he's got very limited mobility but he pushes back against her and the friction between them is the greatest feeling in the world. Her hands slip under his shirt, pulling it up, her fingernails scratching against his ribs. It doesn't seem fair that she's under his clothes when he's still grabbing fistfuls of her dress, so he tries to tug the top of it down. It gets stuck somewhere near her armpits and she has to shimmy a little to help him get it down to her waist. Her lacy, little black strapless bra winds up tangled at her waist with the top of her dress all the same.

The sound she makes when he finally gets his hands on her breasts is somewhere between a breathy sigh and an agonized moan. Her hands cover his, like he might actually be stupid enough to take them away, and when she meets his gaze, the look in them is so hazy and dark, and her skin is warm against him. She ducks down to kiss him again, and he feels her hands at his belt, blindly undoing the buckle, her wrist resting against his erection with just the smallest hint of pressure.

"Oh shit," he mutters against her mouth. "Kim, you are so hot… I missed you..."

It's the first words that have been said since they started this make-out, and his voice sounds loud and hoarse in the small space. Her hands still, and he anchors an arm around her waist to keep her pressed to him while he tries to move her off his cock lest he blows it in his pants. She's still kissing him as she goes back to work on his pants, undoing the belt, button and fly in what feels like record time. Her hand slips inside his boxer briefs to take him out, and she runs her fingers along the length of him from root to tip re-acquainting herself with him. He clenches his jaw and wishes there was time for a good old-fashioned hand job and the main event, but they're pushing their luck as is, so he tears open one of the condoms with his teeth and slips it on. She rises to her knees above him to try to get her panties off, but there's not enough room for her to maneuver.

"It's okay," he says, brushing her hands away. "Just …"

He hooks a finger in the crotch of her underwear to move it aside, and then she sinks down on him and they groan together loudly. She wraps her arms around his neck and he clutches at her waist, but they stay still for a long second.

She shifts just a bit, wringing a moan out of him, and then starts to move in earnest, circling her hips like she dancing the belly dance and its amazing. She balances herself on his shoulders and leans back just a bit, tossing her head back. Her breasts are bouncing in his face and she is so tight around him. Its always a shock when they first join just how tight and warm she is there.

The part of him that knows that they can be caught at any moment and it makes everything so much better.

Her pace gets a little more frantic and he doesn't think he can hold back much longer, so he slips a hand inside her panties. She gasps when he finds the right spot and he keeps going until she rattles around him like a live wire and he's coming just a second later with an embarrassing grunt that he tries to muffle against her shoulder.

When he rouses a minute or so later, he's slumped back against the door, the arm rest digging into his back, and Kim is slumped against him, a boneless, breathless heap. He can't talk, can't think – he's pretty sure that he wouldn't be able to spell his own damn name at the moment – so he stays silent, trying to catch his breath. She lifts her head from his chest and she's never looked sexier, with her glassy eyes, flushed cheeks and a piece of sweaty hair plastered along her jaw.

"Wow," she says, sounding a little surprised. He'd be offended, but he is surprised himself. Kim took initiative, she took the lead, she rode him into oblivion. in the back seat of this car, while parked near a park in her neighborhood. "Um… wow," she repeats again, laughing this time. "I missed you..."

"Yeah, I kind of an figured that."

He reaches up to brush the hair away from her jaw, and she turns into his hand, nuzzling his fingers. Then she's sliding off of him, onto the seat between his legs, and pulling her bra back into place. He grabs a crumpled napkin from the floor to get rid of the condom and clean himself up. Whwn he tries to sit up he leaves a hand print on the window, because his palms are sweaty and he remembers the Titanic and he chuckles to himself.

He watches Kim right her clothing as he buttons himself back up, and she seems strangely calm. He is a pile of jangly nerves, even if every muscle in his body feels as if he's just had the most amazing massage ever.

"I did not plan for it to go like this, but sometimes... sometimes I can't control myself around you."

He shakes his head.

"Me either. Like, right now my mind's kind of blown."

She grins, looking as pleased as if she knows this, this feeling.

She crawls back over him and kisses him, softer than their earlier kisses but just as determined. He loves the sultry look in her eyes and her messy hair when she pulls back. He rubs his thumb over her lips and she brushes her tongue against it, and just like that, he's thinking about round two.

But that's just craziness, so he nods in the general direction of her home.

"We should probably get back before… you know."

Outside the car, Kim straightens her dress and runs her hands through her hair to smooth it. Just like that she is presentable and he want to muss her up again.

He can only hope that her dad never finds out about this.


	23. Chapter 23

A/N: I am traveling right now, so I don't have as much time. this is short and I am not sure if I will be able to post for the next 24 hours.

The actual day of Kim's birthday is in the middle of the week and Jack has been wracking his brain with ideas. He does not think he can outdo her surprise gift to him and he is pretty much run out of options for gifts. And while he hasn't quite figured out the actual present, he knows that he wants to give her the letter. The one from when he was going to Otai. It seems fitting, considering that she gave him hers. Unfortunately, his is not nearly as eloquent as hers. Like, not at all. Its pretty clear it was written by a young teen boy. Still, it was as authentically him as it can be and he has to be as brave as Kim was.

The morning of her birthday he makes sure he gets to her house before she leaves for the station with a latte in hand. He also brings a small pot of the cabbage rose bush. It is still young and is not that big so he manages to carry both the cup and the pot in one go. When her dad opens the door he just smiles at him. It was an interesting development between them. Apparently, though Kim did not quite tell the full story, her dad put the fight over the ex, Brett's bruised face, and Kai's apology together and had quietly thanked Jack for looking after Kim. So now Jack is a welcome guest again.

Kim is already in the kitchen having breakfast when he enters and she beams at him making Jack smile back just as widely. Her mom immediately begins fussing over a gorgeous plant and invites him to join them for a dinner this night. Kim is shy and he sees that she wants him there, so he agrees. It would give him the reason to give his present then.

When they go to the station, Kim is sipping her latte and humming a tune and Jack decides that even if his letter is awkward, she would never laugh at it.

He still has another little surprise for her and he hopes it works out.

* * *

Kim is busy again: this time she is basically trailing the sports correspondent and does incessant searches for various sports and athletes. When she gives him the information, he always adds tidbits that are not in public circulation, gossip and inside scoop, and its fascinating to see him pluck all this knowledge and weave it into a story. She comes up with the Tweets and sometimes he corrects them, but mostly he just lets her put it out there without too much editing.

She is going like this for half a day, when the alerts and filters that she has set up to monitor the social media started popping up on her computer screen. She checks them and then simply stops breathing. She stares at her screen for what feels like an eternity, until she remembers that she needs oxygen. There are tweets and re-tweets of likes of Jack's original message, which is a simple "Happy Birthday, Kim!" with hashtags 'beautiful,' 'bestgirlfriend,' 'blackbeltbeauty,' 'luckytohaveyou.' Somehow he got their entire school and dojo students to participate in this and its now trending, at least in this zip code.

Kim is kind of teary and smiling at the same time and the producer catches her like this.

"What? Some nice feel good story? Veteran homecoming? Dog reunited with its human? Cute baby singing?"

She simply shakes her head, "Nah, just some high school students being goofs."

The producers comes around to look at the screen, "So I take it you the Kim in question that this guy is lucky to have?"

The smile on the woman's face is soft and indulgent. She is middle-aged and has children of her own (they are much younger though) and usually she is always running and is stressed. Right now, this smile makes her look much younger and prettier.

"You know, I married my high school sweetheart..." She trails off, no doubt thinking of him. "Well, congratulations Kim. Both on your birthday and your sweet boyfriend."

Kim sits and enjoys this moment for a bit, until the grumpy sportscaster draws her attention to something happening in the soccer tournament and they are off on their joint reporting and tweeting.

She is almost ready to leave, when the producer makes her stay a little longer for something that she needs to check, but ultimately forgets to tell Kim so she is just sitting and waiting. Then the 6 o'clock news team starts their broadcast and all of over sudden, Kim hears her name.

"And on a bit of the housekeeping news. Our won summer intern, Kim Crawford, just turned eighteen and we want to congratulate and thank her. She's been a tremendous help to all of us and the sports desk in particular. For all of you out there who check our sports Tweeter and Facebook accounts, for the last three days Kim was handling them and we think she is doing great. Congratulations, Kim. From all of us, oldsters who make you run for coffee and make copies." At this the camera swung on her direction and all Kim can do is just smile and mouth _thank you._

By the time she gets down, everyone she runs across in the building congratulates her and she has an extra pep in her step. She bounds into the parking lot to find Jack waiting for her with a silly smile on his face, holding his phone.

"I saw the news. Its nice of them to remember." he leans to kiss her.

"I have you to thank for that. One of the producers saw your tweet and figured it was for me. So, I think she alerted the news crew. How did you manage that?" Kim is so happy right now.

"Oh, just a few favors. Brett is eager to get on my good side, Milton and Rudy told the dojo students, and Grace took care of the cheer squad. Did you know that your squad is like a well-organized army of friends, followers and acquaintances. Somehow, its like a general giving an order and suddenly the entire school was involved. I am not sure if I am impressed or scared."

They chat as they get to the car. They are meeting her parents at the restaurant and Kim takes an opportunity to re-fresh her make-up.

Jack looks at her every now and then and she finally asks, "What?"

"Nothing... Just, you are beautiful..."

She melts inside. She is a goo that vaguely has her shape. She laughs and snorts and then blushes, "You can't say that to me right now. I'll cry and all this effort would be in vain."

He just shakes his head and looks back at the road.

She is so happy right now.

* * *

Jack is nervous. More than ever.

He is going to give her the present and the letter.

While the present is something that he is confident she'd like, the letter... Well, too late now.

The dinner is wonderful. Elizabeth and Chuck are good at keeping the conversation flowing easy and they like Jack.

When the waiters sing Happy birthday to Kim and she blushes the prettiest of pinks, Jack gathers his courage and hands over to her his gift. She opens the card first and her mouth opens into a perfect O. She looks at him quickly and he simply nods. Kim folds the letter back into the envelope and goes to open her gift. It's a just a delicate silver chain with one pendant that looks like a small disk with a peridot. On the back he asked the jeweler to engrave the route his taken to follow her on the trip earlier in the summer. He explains it, uncomfortable under the attention of three Crawfords.

"Oh, it's so sweet, isn't honey?" Elizabeth gushes and Chuck merely nods.

Kim is still silent and when he finally looks at her, she simply says, "I love it."

She leaves with her parents and they only share a small kiss.

Almost immediately he gets a text from her. "I'll leave the window open."

He goes home to change into some gym clothes, since he is going to be climbing. When he gets to her house, it's been at leasT half hour and she probably read his letter.

* * *

Kim,

I want to tell you that I will miss you. And guys too. But you probably the most. I mean Otai is great and I will make my Grandpa proud. But, I mean, I will miss my friends. And you. I wish we could go together.

Then we don't have to be apart.

I like you. Like-like you. And I liked you for a while. I guess, I crushed on you since we met. You are pretty and kind of tough. You are a good friend and are good at Karate. Any guy would want to be with you. I bet you would date someone by the time I come back. I don't think I like that.

I didn't like when that doll head was all over you either. I said I was looking out for you, but I was kind of jealous.

Well, now you know.

I like you, Kim. Take care. I will come back soon.

Jack.

* * *

When Jack climbs into Kim's room, she is still wearing her clothes from before. She holds his letter in her hands and her eyes are teary, but also sparkle like diamonds.

He is silent and she just looks at him with her sparkling eyes and he is pretty sure she liked his letter.

She finally comes closer and hugs him around his waist.

"We are such idiots. We should have exchanged the letter then..."

"I don't know... if we had, I would not have come on that family business trip and wouldn't have tried those azuki beans. Or seen ugly fish. Or visited rose gardens with you. I say I am better for having done that."

She laughs at that and rises to kiss him.

"You are very good with your words."


	24. Chapter 24

Kim's eighteenth birthday party is a huge bash. Since she is a cheerleader (and Jack came to know that they are a large bunch of not just the squad members, but a huge group of friends. So there are a lot of people at the party. Plus all the athletes and Karate kids. All in all, the room at the country club that the Crawford's rented is full and merry.

Kim's internship is better than she expected. She even invited Matt to her party and the young man actually spends time with Rudy and Milton.

Brett didn't show up and Jack figured it would be like this from now on. He doesn't regret hitting the other boy simply because 'no means no' even if Kim was not his target. Apparently, Grace spread the story (and it's consequences) to a wider circle and Brett would have difficulty finding girlfriends from the squad.

The most interesting development was the video uploaded to YouTube of his and Kai's fight. Somehow it was seen by someone connected to the film industry and Jack and Kai were approached to do a bit of stunt double and extras on set type of work.

Jack only has to marvel at the way life worked sometimes. He was sure that he would be in trouble if his parents and Grandpa saw the video... Instead, his parents, while not exactly excited for him to be in such physically demanding and dangerous job, are also letting him decide. Of course Grandpa is very pleased. For both of them. He has built a great career as the trainer and choreographer of the actions scenes in martial arts movies, so his two grandsons doing something similar tickles him pink.

He hasn't told Kim of this because he's not sure he want to do it. It would mean less time working in the dojo (and Jack wants his sensei rank) and less time with her.

And it's weird, but sort of gets why she took so long to decide on Otai. There's the possibility of a career and some fulfilment, and it feels important. But there's also Kim... and everything between them.

Now he knows the map of Kim's body and the touch that makes her cheeks flush and the breath catch high in her throat. He knows she clutches at him at the of orgasm, or when she feels overwhelmed, and that she whispers his name when he's inside and that makes his pulse race in a way he didn't know was possible. Now he knows that just the sight of her smile widening makes him happy and god isn't that just a further proof of him being completely whipped? At least that's what Jerry says, but his curly haired friend is single and he has Kim. So there's that...

And the more he learns these things, the more respect he feels for Kim. Because while he sort of planned, he certainly was not prepared for this strange fluttery feeling that is buzz-humming beneath his skin and the need to be close.

Yeah, he is whipped...

He's startled by the feel of her warm hand on his back. He turns and smiles at her, hugging her close.

"You look deep in thought. Something you wanna tell me?"

"I got the weirdest offer the other day. Well Kai and I did. To be extras in some action movies and to try out as stunt doubles for the main lead."

Her eyes were getting larger with each word. "How exactly they know you or Kai? Tournament performances?"

"In a way... it was those videos of our fight... Grandpa is kind of happy..."

"And you? Are you happy?"

Here she is... the best girlfriend... concerned about him...

"I don't know how to explain. It's exciting. Like confirmation that I am good at something. And it's coming from such a different source. And my Gramps is over the moon. But then I think it would take me away from you and getting my sensei rank. And I am not sure I want to be a stunt double... You know?"

"Yeah, I do. I thought the same when I received the Otai offer. Here I am, not just a cheerleader with pretty face, but a legitimate martial artist. And it's an awesome feeling. But I also feel like that when I do my internship or when I am with you..." she stops and blushes again.

And he is totally beaming back at her.

They stay like this a little longer and then Kim says, "You should try that stunt work. See if you like it. You still have a year to decide what to do with your life. And us finding time... We'll make time. If we are important to each other, we will."

That night after the party, Jack climbs into Kim's window expecting a long awaited night of sex, but he is not prepared for Kim showing him the screen of her tablet. She composed her response to Otai declining their offer. He knew it was coming, but still it takes him by surprise. He watches as she hits send and... it's done. He comes up to her and kisses the back of her head and she sighs.

"I don't know why I dragged it out for so long. I am great at Karate, but I am not who should be going there. And if you didn't think you needed it to become accomplished, then I don't think I need it either. I am sorry if my hesitation hurt you."

"Never mind that. We are good now. Really, really good."

And that phrase seemed to have flipped the switch from pensive into burning hot and the two of them move towards each other like magnets of different polarities.

His muscles tighten with need and want and must fucking have when Kim abruptly pulls away, walks to her bed, sits down and groaning a breathy, "Come here," as she reaches for him. Jack moves to ber instantly, their mouths meeting the moment he crawls over, arms wrapped snugly around her body as she sets the angle and rhythm of their kiss, nipping at his lip, playing wetly with his tongue.

When they break for air, Jack runs a fingertip over Kim's kiss-bitten lip gleaming wet in the low light, and they watch each other intently, faces millimetres apart, lips barely touching. Jack closes his eyes, whispering "Kim" around a sigh, not quite knowing what he means to say.

She takes it as something though, as Kim whispers his name in response and Jack startles at the sound and the movement, his eyes snapping open to watch as she flips them over and Kim, wearing pink camisole and shorts, starts moving over him in slow leisurely pace, getting him hard almost instantly. She is all soft skin, golden hair, subtle smell (he recognizes enough about various to know its peonies) and quiet breathy moans. They kiss for eternity it seems, like this, slowly losing clothes and reservations. Soon she is naked above him and just as he goes for a condom, she says 'no need' and he is rendered stupid. It doesn't seem to mater as she positions herself and sinks onto him.

Slow.

The hiss of their blended breath is loud and stuttered and Jack is gone.

Clutching the back of his neck Kim lifts herself a little, and they both moan at every inch she rolls back down. Jack firmly palms her butt to help himself be distracted from how amazing it feels to be with her like this. He needs to go slow, but she thrusts harder needing more, and as they move the awareness of everything withers except for the tip of Kim's tongue grazing the shell of his ear.

She tugs his earlobe with her teeth and a throaty growl, her whispered breath hot and shivery as she groans, "Jack, I…I want -"

With a growl Jack flips them suddenly, senselessly, throwing her back against the mattress. Kim barely has time to exhale her gasp of surprise when he demands, "hold on, Kim," and she looks up at him, wide eyed, chest heaving.

She swallows thickly and sinks lower into the mattress, dropping her knees apart and the sight of her like this gets him even harder. She contact with him, teeth toying with her lower lip, eyes dark and tempting like she knows exactly what she's doing to him, like she's done this a thousand times before.

"Like this?"

Jack hisses on an exhale, "Yes, fuck, yes," as he grabs her hips and Kim cries out, the sound low and raw and visceral, her hands curling into the sheets as he enters her, hard and deep.

Moving together urgently, Jack lets his fingertips trace the dips of her ribcage (so delicate) and her slight muscle (and yet so strong), his one hand slips onto her spine to move her lower back in rhythm with his thrusts, as his other graps greedily at her breast, trailing up into her hair, looping the waves of it through his fingers and tugging a little as she arches her neck and snaps her hips harder against his, whimpering, "So good, Jack, more."

His pace quickens instinctively at the sound, the feel of her fluttering around him the closer she gets, so hot and wet as she pushes back, meeting every hard thrust with one of her own. Her feet slip for purchase a couple of times and she steadies herself by wrapping her legs around him. she has less movement now - she can only hold on for the ride - and he drops his head into the crook of her neck, biting a little and she rests her cheek against his head with a whispered plea.

Jack hums gutturally and presses forward to kiss the slope of her shoulder, nose brushing across her rose-scented skin, the rhythm of his hips almost savage because he can't stop, won't stop, not now.

Kim whimpers at the change of pace, but follows it up with a 'yes, yes, yes' until the moment she tenses around him tightly, his name muffled where her mouth is pressed into his hair, her breath hot and uneven, and hands tangling in it. Jack rides her through it hard, biting down deeper than he planned as the pleasure builds and builds and bursts, his head thrown back as he buries deep into the heat of her and everything goes white.

Hips still lurching slightly, Jack slumps forward, panting into Kim's neck, the lust-filled haze of her slinking away with every hard breath stretched across his ribcage.

"Shit," he mumbles into her hair, and Kim eventually stirs and turns to look at him still trying to catch her breath as her fingertips clench into the tense sweaty strain of his forearms.

"Jack?"

"It's okay." He pats her thigh gently and kisses her shoulder before collapsing onto his back, "Just... I am glad we almost kissed on that bench. And hope your dad never catches us or that I never have a daughter..."

"Oh, Jack... Let's just go to sleep."

* * *

The next week Kim's internship is over and she gets a course credit and a letter of recommendation to a school of her choosing. But the best part of the exit interview is the conversation with the gruff sportscaster, who basically offers her to be a part time (really, almost a free-lance) job to continue do what she did for the last two weeks: deliver sports news via social media. The job pays a pittance, but, of course, Kim is thrilled to hear it. This is better than she thought it would be. He even promised that she can come to the school games and cover them herself, if the team or a player are good enough. (You need to learn the names of best highschool athletes, their coaches, the scouts, the whole deal. That's how you learn about sport, Kim.)

She takes it: it is essentially just two days a week, unless there is a game, and she only has to come for part of the day. A lot of her work can be done remotely, which the old guy doesn't exactly like, but agrees that it makes sense.

Jack on the other hand, follows up with his own job offer. Apparently the guys running the company offering the job knew of Jack's and Kai's grandfather and expected nothing short of brilliance from the two of them. The two cousins still a little stiff around each other, actually step closer to one another, united in this, this pride of their ancestry.

Beyond their pedigree, both cousins are young, which is as necessary for this particular project, because the actors are supposed to be teens.

Jack ends up with the stunt double job for the main character, Kai stepping in for the antagonist. Their animosity may have mellowed, but they are still super competitive so their fight sequences are intense.

It is when Jack is filming that he kind of figured what he wants to do.

He wants to direct. It's weird, but he sees what happens on the set, the magic of taking just the dialogue and the words of the script and creating the story. It's visual, yes, atmospheric and something that can be rendered into words. And he wants to do that, to create the film magic.

He thinks he can start small, with fight scenes. Learn to choreograph, learn about being a director. Built his resume with these stunt work, and transition into fight choreography and then directing.

The filming of their part is relatively quick and they are back home before the school starts. He missed Kim for the last two weeks, but he comes home with this new determination and he is glad he had this experience, even if he was away from Kim.

He gets him late enough that he doesn't think he can arrange to meet her. He showers and is ready to go to bed, when he sees a message from her, "keep the window open."

Heart rate jumping into overdrive, he does just that and about 15 minutes later he hears quiet scraping noise. He looks out to see kim balancing on the beams of the patio pergola. In no time she climbs in and he squeezes her hard to him.

"You are insane... I could have come to you."

"It's much safer to come to your room. That pergola is right outside your room. And unlike that tree at my house, these beams are sturdy. Plus, I missed you."

She kisses him and he can't believe his life.

"How was filming? And working with Kai? Was it dangerous?"

"It was fine. Not dangerous and working with Kai was OK... As for filming, I think I want to direct. Being on set, seeing it all done, watching the director going for specific look, even if took like motion shots, was kind of amazing..."

She is quiet for a moment.

"Director... I have no idea what to say. You'd need to go to school, right?"

"Yeah, but also just experience, exposure, you know... maybe start with action stuff, since I am most experienced in this... I don't know... does it sound too crazy?"

"Not really. I mean I am trying the journalism even though everybody says it's a dying profession, because instant social media culture shortens the attention span and makes professional reporting too cumbersome to deal with... Directing sounds interesting and I think you can be good at it."

They kiss again, young and optimistic, the whole world at their feet, their whole lives in front of them.

Soon, they have to go back to their last year of school after this summer. They almost parted for a long time, they found their courage to go after what they wanted, they found love and intimacy like never before, and now they both know what they want to maybe do after school. Not bad for just one summer.

One very long summer.

A/N: I will be on vacation for the next three weeks. I won't be posting during this time. Don't worry I will be plotting out my next story...


End file.
